Lawsuit: Dem Donor Linked to Controversial Ukrainian Oligarch

A lawsuit filed in Delaware links South Florida businessman Uriel Laber, who contributed $2,500 to the 2018 election campaign of Rep. Debbie Mucarsel-Powell, D-Fla., to a Ukrainian oligarch, The Daily Beast is reporting.

The lawsuit filed from a bank now controlled by the Ukrainian government claims that Laber played a role in an alleged scheme by oligarch Ihor Kolomoisky to steal billions from PrivatBank, which Kolomoisky had previously owned, according to The Daily Beast. The website noted Laber has strongly denied the allegations and that Kolomoisky has not been charged with a crime in the U.S. or Ukraine.

Laber contributed a total of $2,500 in 2017 and 2018 to Mucarsel-Powell's campaign. She successfully flipped a Florida seat previously held by Republicans.

She is a member of the House Judiciary Committee, which was involved in the impeachment inquiry against President Donald Trump.

The Miami Herald reported during the 2018 campaign that Mucarsel-Powell's husband Robert had worked as general counsel for companies owned at least in part by Kolomoisky.

"The Miami Herald long ago debunked far-fetched theories involving Rep. Debbie Mucarsel-Powell," said her spokesperson. "Moreover, one of the first things Rep. Debbie Mucarsel-Powell did in Congress is fight for a bill to protect our government from foreign influence."

And a spokesperson for Laber said: "The allegations contained in the May 21 Delaware Chancery Court lawsuit are not only 100% false and defamatory, but they are outlandish."

The spokesperson added that the congresswoman's husband had worked for a company owned in part by Laber, but left in 2017. Kolomoisky's company is a shareholder of the company.