NY Rep Grimm Turns Himself In to Feds

Michael Grimm investigated over campaign funds
By Matt Cantor,  Newser Staff
Posted Apr 28, 2014 9:52 AM CDT
NY Rep Grimm Turns Himself In to Feds
In this May 9, 2012 file photo, Rep. Michael Grimm, R-N.Y., speaks at a news conference on Capitol Hill in Washington.   (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin, File)

US Rep. Michael Grimm has turned himself in to the FBI over charges linked to his New York City restaurant, the Washington Post reports. The Staten Island Republican—who is a former member of the FBI himself—has faced an ongoing federal investigation into his campaign finances. The expected indictment, however, deals with his restaurant, which has links to a celebrity rabbi whose backers gave Grimm's 2010 campaign more than $500,000, the Post reports; the restaurant has also been fined over worker pay.

Employees have sued the Upper East Side's Healthalicious, saying it failed to pay them fairly and dodged rules by paying in cash. The campaign finance question centers on the restaurant's ties to Israeli fundraiser Ofer Biton, who acted as an intermediary for Grimm and celeb rabbi Yoshiyahu Yosef Pinto. Pinto's many followers were key to Grimm's success in 2010. There are also allegations of a straw-donor scheme run by a Houston businesswoman. CBS 2 reports that Grimm—who made headlines not long ago for threatening a reporter—will be charged with fraud. Grimm's lawyer says he's innocent "of any wrongdoing," and that, "When the dust settles, he will be vindicated." (More Michael Grimm stories.)

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