Ukraine’s top prosecutor said Friday that his office is "conducting an audit" of cases that have been previously investigated and closed, including the probe involving the energy giant Burisma, where Hunter Biden had served on the board.
Ruslan Ryaboshapka, the country's prosecutor general, said at a news conference that his office was instructed to review cases that have been closed, fragmented or investigated to make sure they were fairly and thoroughly handled. He said no one attempted to influence him to make the call.
“We are now reviewing all the cases which were closed, fragmented or investigated earlier in order to make a decision on cases where illegal procedural decisions were taken,” he said.
The office plans to review 15 cases that previously were closed, including the Burisma case. This does not yet mean Ukraine is opening a new investigation involving Burisma or the Bidens.
His comment came as the Trump White House fights an impeachment inquiry that involves allegations that President Trump used military funding as part of a "quid pro quo" with Kiev to investigate Biden and his father, former Vice President Joe Biden.
Trump has denied wrongdoing. Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky, who participated in a scrutinized phone call with Trump in July, said he never felt pressure from Trump.
Trump's key focus has been how Hunter Biden, who reportedly knew little about the energy business and the country, ended up on Burisma’s board while his father was vice president under Barack Obama. The elder Biden later pressured Ukraine to oust a prosecutor who had been looking into the company's founder, though Biden allies say this intervention was driven by corruption concerns.
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Ukraine top prosecutor says Biden-linked Burisma case will be reviewed
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