Giuliani caught on voicemail saying he planned to ‘get rid of’ his phone number, raising questions about evidence destruction

Stephen Rex Brown, New York Daily News

NEW YORK — Rudy Giuliani’s ineptitude with smartphones came back to bite him once again Tuesday — this time in the case against a former business partner accused of political corruption.

An attorney for Lev Parnas revealed in a new Manhattan Federal Court filing that he received an odd voicemail from Giuliani weeks after the Ukraine-born businessman’s arrest. In classic Giuliani fashion, the personal attorney for President Donald Trump failed to hang up his phone.

“It’s Rudy Giuliani. I’m calling, uh, to see if we can talk either about or with Lev. I have my lawyer with me, but you can call me back at ... ,” the former mayor said, sharing his phone number.

Giuliani then said to his own lawyer, “That’s the soon to be gotten rid of number,” apparently not realizing he hadn’t hung up.

Parnas’ attorney, Joseph Bondy, said the comment raised concerns Giuliani might have planned to destroy evidence.

“Mr. Giuliani’s entreaty to speak with Mr. Parnas went unanswered, and it is unknown whether Mr. Giuliani actually altered or destroyed any evidence associated with his cellphone, nor why he might have felt a need to get ‘rid of’ his number,” Bondy wrote.

Giuliani is notorious among political insiders for accidentally dialing reporters, giving them a chance to listen to his conversations.

The revelation was part of a 55-page filing challenging the indictment against Parnas. He and three others were charged in October 2019 with a complex web of campaign finance schemes, some of which overlapped with Trump’s effort to dig up dirt on Joe Biden in Ukraine.

Parnas argues his arrest was timed to foil plans to cooperate with the impeachment inquiry and orchestrated by Attorney General William Barr himself. Parnas turned over reams of evidence to House Democrats conducting the inquiry. The Republican-controlled Senate acquitted Trump in February.

“Mr. Parnas’ long-standing assertion that Attorney General Barr ordered the timing of his indictment and arrest as a means to protect the President and thwart his potential testimony in the impeachment inquiry has been substantially strengthened,” Bondy wrote.

One of Parnas’ co-defendants in the case, David Correia, pleaded guilty two months ago to scamming investors in a planned insurance company aptly named Fraud Guarantee. Parnas co-founded the company with Correia.

The new legal challenge emerged one day after NBC News reported that prosecutors on the Parnas case were considering a legal request for Giuliani’s emails — a sign that the investigation was ramping up following the presidential election. The emails would presumably include communications with his most famous client: Trump.

Giuliani touted the report as a badge of honor on Twitter.

“I’m proud to be number one on Biden Vindictive government list. Sounds like the DOJ anti-Trumpers can’t wait for Biden to make DOJ the GOVERNMENT Secret Police like they were under Obama. They want to seize my emails. No reason No wrongdoing Attorney-Client privilege.?” Giuliani tweeted, falsely linking Biden to an investigation that began over a year ago.

Giuliani told the New York Daily News he hadn’t received a demand from prosecutors.

“No one” has reached out, Giuliani said in a text. “It’s pure bull.”

Robert Costello, Giuliani’s attorney, said he doubted the report.

“As far as we know there is nothing going on in the SDNY concerning Mayor Giuliani,” he said.

———

(Chris Sommerfeldt contributed to this story.)

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