June 29, 2023

The Honorable James Comer

Chairman
Committee on Oversight and Accountability
U.S. House of Representatives
Washington, D.C. 20515

Dear Chairman Comer:

All Members of the Committee have now had an opportunity to review the June 2020
Form FD-1023, which you subpoenaed from the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). When
discussing the second-hand allegations made by a Ukrainian oligarch that are memorialized in
that form, it is important that Committee Members appreciate and convey the full context of
what we know about those allegations. In particular, I write today to remind you that in
attempting to gather information damaging to the Biden family from Ukrainian sources during
2019 and 2020, Rudy Giuliani received evidence that directly contradicts the allegations in the
Form FD-1023. This evidence was turned over to Congress—and made available to both
Republicans and Democrats—by Mr. Giuliani’s associate, Lev Parnas, as part of the
impeachment inquiry against then-President Trump. 1

As both the FBI and Mr. Giuliani himself have stated, the allegations relayed to the FBI
by the confidential human source (CHS), based on his conversations with a Ukrainian oligarch,
in the June 2020 Form FD-1023, largely repeated allegations Mr. Giuliani had previously shared
with the FBI. 2 In 2019 and 2020, Congress thoroughly reviewed and debunked Mr. Giuliani’s

1
Vitaly Pruss, VPAnswers July7th2019 (Word Document) (online at
https://oversightdemocrats.house.gov/sites/democrats.oversight.house.gov/files/VPanswersJuly7th2019.pdf) (This
document was provided to Congress as part of a complete extraction of Lev Parnas’s iPhone, which was seized by
the government upon his arrest on October 9, 2019. The extraction of Mr. Parnas’s phone was turned over to
Congress as part of the impeachment inquiry against then-President Trump, in response to an October 10, 2019,
subpoena. The document was sent as a Word document attached to iMessages from Mr. Parnas to Rudy Giuliani
and to Victoria Toensing on July 8, 2019. The Word document’s metadata indicates it was originally created by
Vitaly Pruss.); see also Former Giuliani Associate Raises Questions About Hunter Biden’s ‘Hard Drive from Hell’,
Politico (Oct. 24, 2020) (online at www.politico.com/news/2020/10/24/hunter-biden-hard-drive-lev-parnas-432108).
2
See Letter from Ranking Member Jamie Raskin, Committee on Oversight and Accountability, to Director
Christopher Wray, Federal Bureau of Investigation (June 16, 2023) (online at
https://oversightdemocrats.house.gov/sites/democrats.oversight.house.gov/files/2023-06-16.JBR%20to%20Wray-
FBI%20re%20Subpoena%20Briefing%20FINAL.pdf); Giuliani to Newsmax: DOJ Overlooked Evidence of Biden
Bribery, Newsmax (June 10, 2023) (Rudy Giuliani stated in an interview: “[Special counsel Jack] Smith said that in
the United States, there’s one system of laws and it … applies equally to everyone. Well, of course, that’s the most
The Honorable James Comer
Page 2

allegations, which were based on a theory that then-Vice President Biden caused the dismissal of
Ukrainian prosecutor Viktor Shokin in order to thwart an investigation of Ukrainian energy
company Burisma Holdings (Burisma) and its founder, Mykola Zlochevsky, while Hunter Biden
served on Burisma’s board. 3

As the FBI explained, the allegations were also thoroughly investigated by Donald
Trump’s own Justice Department as part of a formal assessment, which Attorney General Barr
assigned to Scott Brady, the U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Pennsylvania. That
assessment was closed in August 2020 after eight months of investigative efforts, which included
interviewing Mr. Giuliani and the CHS, as well as reviewing suspicious activity reports (SARs)
filed by banks. Mr. Brady’s team found insufficient evidence to warrant escalating this
assessment to a preliminary or full investigation, and it was closed with the concurrence of Mr.
Brady and high-level Department of Justice (DOJ) officials. 4

As part of the impeachment inquiry against then-President Trump, Congress learned that
Mr. Zlochevsky, the Ukrainian oligarch and the owner of Burisma, whom Republican
Committee Members appear to have identified as the source of the allegations memorialized in
the Form FD-1023, squarely rebutted these allegations in 2019. 5 Despite being interviewed as
part of a campaign by Mr. Giuliani and his proxies in 2019 and 2020 to procure damaging
information about the Biden family, Mr. Zlochevsky explicitly and unequivocally denied those
allegations. 6 Specifically, Mr. Zlochevsky denied (1) that anyone at Burisma had “any contacts”
with then former Vice President Biden or his representatives while Hunter Biden served on the
Burisma board, and (2) that former Vice President Biden or his staff “in any way” assisted Mr.
Zlochevsky or Burisma. 7

ridiculous idiotic statement to make on a day in which we find out that the Bidens took a $10 million bribe from a
Ukrainian Mykola Zlochevsky, which I could have told you, you know, and did tell [the DOJ] three years ago.”)
(online at www.newsmax.com/newsmax-tv/joe-biden-bribery-ukraine/2023/06/10/id/1123109/).
3
Committee on the Judiciary, Impeachment of Donald J. Trump President of the United States, 116th
Cong. (2019) H. Rept. 116-346; United States Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs
and Senate Finance Committee Minority Staff Report, Election Interference: Majority Investigation Amplifies
Russian Attack on 2020 Election (Sept. 23, 2020) (online at www.hsgac.senate.gov/wp-
content/uploads/imo/media/doc/200923_FullReport_PetersHSGACWydenFinance.pdf).
4
Committee on Oversight and Accountability, Press Release: Ranking Member Raskin’s Statement on the
Facts Following FBI Briefing and In-Person Document Review (June 7, 2023) (online at
https://oversightdemocrats.house.gov/news/press-releases/ranking-member-raskin-s-statement-on-the-facts-
following-fbi-briefing-and-in).
5
The GOP ‘Bribery’ Allegations Against Biden Remain Transparently Thin, Washington Post (June 13,
2023) (online at www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2023/06/13/gop-biden-allegation-analysis/); Former Giuliani
Associate Raises Questions About Hunter Biden’s ‘Hard Drive from Hell’, Politico (Oct. 24, 2020) (online at
www.politico.com/news/2020/10/24/hunter-biden-hard-drive-lev-parnas-432108).
6
The Complex Network Pushing for Ukraine Dirt—with Rudy Giuliani at Its Center, Washington Post (Jan.
16, 2020) (online at www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2020/01/16/complex-network-pushing-ukraine-dirt-with-
rudy-giuliani-its-center/).
7
Vitaly Pruss, VPAnswers July7th2019 (Word Document) (online at
https://oversightdemocrats.house.gov/sites/democrats.oversight.house.gov/files/VPanswersJuly7th2019.pdf).
The Honorable James Comer
Page 3

Mr. Zlochevsky’s statements are recorded in a written document produced by Mr.

Giuliani’s associate, Lev Parnas, to the House Committees overseeing the first impeachment
inquiry concerning former President Trump in January 2020. 8 Thus, this information has been
available to the Oversight Committee since that date. Moreover, the FBI obtained the document
when it seized Mr. Parnas’s phone pursuant to a warrant in 2019. 9 It was therefore in the
possession of the DOJ at the time Mr. Brady was evaluating Mr. Giuliani’s allegations regarding
Burisma and the Biden family.

According to reports, Mr. Giuliani was eager to get information directly from Mr.
Zlochevsky regarding Hunter Biden’s work as a member of Burisma’s board of directors. Mr.
Giuliani charged one of his associates, Lev Parnas, with sending a series of questions for Mr.
Zlochevsky to Vitaly Pruss, another long-time associate of Mr. Giuliani who was a close friend
of Mr. Zlochevsky. 10 Mr. Zlochevsky’s answers to those questions were memorialized in a
document titled “VPanswers July7th 2019.” The metadata for the document indicates that it was
created by Mr. Pruss. 11

After receiving Mr. Zlochevsky’s responses, Mr. Parnas forwarded the document via text
messages on July 8, 2019, respectively, to Mr. Giuliani and to Victoria Toensing, an attorney
working in conjunction with Mr. Giuliani on his Ukrainian efforts to gather damaging
information about the Bidens. Mr. Giuliani reportedly was “not satisfied” with Mr. Zlochevsky’s
answers, and according to Mr. Parnas, was “furious” that Mr. Zlochevsky did not provide the
factual support he wanted. 12 The questions and answers by Mr. Zlochevsky set forth in the
document include the following:

Were you aware that Hunter Biden had met at [sic] with State Department officials
in both May 2015 (Blinken) and December 2015? What did you understand the
purpose of those contacts were?

WE NEVER APPROVED OR ASKED HIM TO CONDUCT THOSE MEETINGS

ON BEHALF OF BURISMA

8
Order, The Honorable J. Paul Oetken, U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York (Jan. 3,
2020) (authorizing production of materials by Mr. Parnas to U.S. House of Representatives Permanent Select
Committee on Intelligence).
9
Letter from Joseph A. Bondy, Attorney for Lev Parnas, to J. Paul Oetken, U.S. District Judge (Dec. 30,
2019); see also Giuliani Associate Lev Parnas Asks Court for Permission to Turn Over Records to House, CBS
News (Dec. 31, 2019) (online at www.cbsnews.com/news/lev-parnas-rudy-giuliani-associate-asks-court-for-
permission-to-turn-over-records-to-house/).
10
Former Giuliani Associate Raises Questions About Hunter Biden’s ‘Hard Drive from Hell’, Politico
(Oct. 24, 2020) (online at www.politico.com/news/2020/10/24/hunter-biden-hard-drive-lev-parnas-432108).
11
Vitaly Pruss, VPAnswers July7th2019 (Word Document) (online at
https://oversightdemocrats.house.gov/sites/democrats.oversight.house.gov/files/VPanswersJuly7th2019.pdf).
12
Former Giuliani Associate Raises Questions About Hunter Biden’s ‘Hard Drive from Hell’, Politico
(Oct. 24, 2020) (online at www.politico.com/news/2020/10/24/hunter-biden-hard-drive-lev-parnas-432108).
The Honorable James Comer
Page 4

Did you ever learn why VP Joe Biden asked for Shokin to be fired as PG?

WE LEARNED ABOUT IT FROM NEWSPAPERS AND INTERNET. WE

NEVER HAD CONTACTS WITH VP BIDEN DURING HIS VISITS TO
UKRAINE

Please detail any contacts you had with VP Joe Biden and his office from 2013
through 2019. Did Hunter ever facilitate any of those contacts?

NO ONE FROM BURISMA EVER HAD ANY CONTACTS WITH VP BIDEN OR

PEOPLE WORKING FOR HIM DURING HUNTER BIDEN’S ENGAGEMENT

Did VP Biden or his staff assist you or your company in any way with business deals
or meetings with world leaders or any other assistance?

NO

Did you ever become aware of documents suggesting $900k was paid to Hunter
Biden for “lobbying” his father?

NO 13

These statements directly contradict and refute the allegations in the Form FD-1023. They are
further evidence of former Attorney General Barr’s own warning that “[t]here are a lot of
agendas in the Ukraine, there are a lot of cross-currents, and we can’t take anything we receive
from the Ukraine at face value.” 14 As Senator Johnson who, as Chair of the Senate Homeland
Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, led Senate Republicans’ 2020 investigation into
the allegations involving Burisma recently conceded in discussing the information in the Form
FD-1023: “That’s what this person says, but again, take that with a grain of salt. This could be
coming from a very corrupt oligarch who could be making this stuff up.” 15

Mr. Zlochevsky’s statements are just one of the many that have debunked the corruption
allegations against President Biden that were first leveled by Rudy Giuliani and have been
reviewed by former President Trump’s own Justice Department. Indeed, as part of their own
investigation into these allegations in 2020, Republican Members of the Senate Homeland
Security and Governmental Affairs and Finance Committees interviewed State Department
officials who confirmed that calls for Mr. Shokin’s dismissal were based not on any investigation

13
Vitaly Pruss, VPAnswers July7th2019 (Word Document) (online at
https://oversightdemocrats.house.gov/sites/democrats.oversight.house.gov/files/VPanswersJuly7th2019.pdf).
14
Barr Confirms Justice Department Is Receiving Giuliani Information About Ukraine, CNN (Feb. 10,
2020) (online at www.cnn.com/2020/02/10/politics/justice-department-rudy-giuliani-ukraine/index.html).
15
Non-Men, The Vicki McKenna Show (June 14, 2022) (online at www.listennotes.com/podcasts/the-
vicki-mckenna/the-vicki-mckenna-show-non-men-aqpGXnv4FsL).
The Honorable James Comer
Page 5

of Burisma, but rather, on his failure to pursue corruption in Ukraine, including at Burisma. 16
Moreover, Shokin was dismissed by the Ukrainian Parliament in 2016 with the broad support of
the U.S. and other Western nations, as well as international organizations such as the
International Monetary Fund, based on his failure to prosecute corruption in Ukraine and his
continued protection of Ukrainian oligarchs. 17 Further, as has been widely reported, any probe
by Ukrainian authorities into Burisma became dormant once Mr. Shokin was appointed
prosecutor general in early 2015. 18 Senior State Department officials also confirmed in the
Senate investigation that U.S. policy in Ukraine was in no way influenced by, and did not
benefit, Hunter Biden. 19

The Form FD-1023 reports unsubstantiated, second-hand hearsay allegations. During his
June 2020 interview recounting conversations with a Ukrainian oligarch years after they took
place, the CHS explicitly noted that it is not unusual for Ukrainian business executives to brag
and show off and that he could not offer any opinion supporting the veracity of the allegations he
was relaying. For this reason, the full factual context surrounding the form—including Mr.
Zlochevsky’s statements contradicting the reported information—is crucial to properly
understanding these allegations. In this case, that context includes not just repeated and failed
efforts in 2019 and 2020 by Mr. Giuliani, Senate Republicans, and Trump’s Justice Department
to find support for these allegations, but also clear evidence that then-Vice President Biden’s
actions carried out the policy of the United States, its allies, and its international partners to
combat corruption in Ukraine.

Very truly yours,

__________________________
Jamie Raskin
Ranking Member

16
United States Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs and Senate Finance
Committee Minority Staff Report, Election Interference: Majority Investigation Amplifies Russian Attack on 2020
Election (Sept. 23, 2020) (online at www.hsgac.senate.gov/wp-
content/uploads/imo/media/doc/200923_FullReport_PetersHSGACWydenFinance.pdf).
17
Ukraine Ousts Viktor Shokin, Top Prosecutor, and Political Stability Hangs in the Balance, New York
Times (Mar. 29, 2016) (online at www.nytimes.com/2016/03/30/world/europe/political-stability-in-the-balance-as-
ukraine-ousts-top-prosecutor.html).
18
E.g., Was Ukrainian Prosecutor Viktor Shokin Prosecuting Burisma?, CNN (online at
www.cnn.com/factsfirst/politics/factcheck_3fae078e-8724-4c28-9340-2c154688af43) (accessed June 11, 2023);
FactCheck.Org, Trump Revives False Narrative on Biden and Ukraine (Oct. 15, 2020) (online at
www.factcheck.org/2020/10/trump-revives-false-narrative-on-biden-and-ukraine/).
19
United States Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs and Senate Finance
Committee Minority Staff Report, Election Interference: Majority Investigation Amplifies Russian Attack on 2020
Election (Sept. 23, 2020) (online at www.hsgac.senate.gov/wp-
content/uploads/imo/media/doc/200923_FullReport_PetersHSGACWydenFinance.pdf).