Ex-NY Congressman Grimm faces sentencing in tax case

Disgraced former congressman Michael Grimm is leaving Staten Island for a little vacation up north, the New York Times reports.

In December, Grimm pleaded guilty to a single felony tax-evasion charge in the wake of an April 2014 indictment tied to his role with a health restaurant he co-owned before he was in Congress.

After a lengthy federal probe into his campaign finance activity, Grimm was charge with launching a tax fraud in 2007 and eventually underreporting more than $1 million in income from his now defunct Upper East Side restaurant named Healthalicious.

The 45-year-old Grimm won re-election in November, but resigned after his guilty plea.

Federal prosecutors had hit Grimm with a 20-count indictment earlier this year on a slew of fraud allegations related to a restaurant he managed.

“Michael Grimm’s offense is an aberration in an otherwise remarkable life lived in selfless service of his country and dedicated towards helping his family, friends, and community”, the memo says.

They point to other similar cases in Brooklyn and Manhattan where the defendants have received probation, and argue, “Mr. Grimm should not be treated different… merely because this case is in the news”.

Grimm’s lawyers pushed back against the “caricature of the typical politician who gets in trouble with the law” in a sentencing memo filed with the court earlier this year.

Molinari, who has served as a political mentor and a father-figure of sorts to Grimm, remains vocal in his support. They also argued that losing his career in Congress was punishment enough.

“Michael has been in a very good mood and I think part of it is it’s going to be over”, Molinari said.