The new date is Jun 29, 2022.
Lev Parnas will face 20 months in prison on campaign finance and wire fraud charges, a federal judge ruled Wednesday, closing out a criminal case against a Ukrainian-American businessman who was accused of helping Rudy Giuliani dredge up dirt about President Joe Biden.
Lev Parnas is in New York City for a court appearance.
The U.S. Attorney's office for the Southern District of New York said in a statement that Parnas was sentenced to three years of supervised release and ordered to pay over two million dollars in back taxes.
The scheme prosecutors say was designed to bribe politicians to give licenses to a recreational marijuana business was found to have been carried out by Parnas.
He pleaded guilty in March to wire fraud for swindling off investors' money from a company he co- founded to protect businesses against fraud.
Parnas' lawyer asked Oetken to sentence his client to time served, arguing that Parnas is remorseful for his conduct, but federal prosecutors wanted 78 to 97 months of prison time.
The Parnas associates have been sentenced. David Corriea was sentenced to about a year in prison after pleading guilty to his involvement in the fraud guarantee scheme. Two people were sentenced for their roles in the campaign finance scheme. The charges against the Russian businessman who is accused of providing money for illegal campaign donations were announced in March, but federal prosecutors think he is still in Russia.
Parnas and Fruman were taken into custody at Dulles International Airport. The two once-obscure businessmen were arrested before they could board a flight to Europe with one-way tickets. According to reports, Fruman and Parnas worked with Giuliani to get information about Biden and the U.S. ambassador to Ukraine. Trump was accused of withholding aid to Ukraine in order to strongarm President Volodymyr Zelensky into announcing a corruption investigation into Biden, which led to him being impeached by the House and acquitted by the Senate.
Parnas' attorney Joseph Bondy told Forbes that his client's sentencing hearing is not a somber day and that Parnas' legal team is proud of Lev for his commitment and courage in his efforts to assist the First Impeachment Inquiry.
According to reports, federal agents searched Giuliani's apartment last year as part of a separate investigation into whether the former Trump attorney illegally lobbyed on behalf of Ukrainians. Giuliani has not been accused of a crime.
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