House

House Ethics Committee delays review of Rep. Grimm

The House Ethics Committee announced Wednesday that it is further delaying its review of Rep. Michael Grimm (R-N.Y.) for alleged campaign finance violations as the Justice Department continues to investigate.

The panel first opened the probe into Grimm for potential campaign finance violations in 2012. Grimm allegedly promised to help Ofer Biton, an Israeli national, obtain a green card in exchange for help with soliciting 2010 campaign contributions. The Staten Island Republican may have also illegally accepted campaign contributions from foreign nationals.

{mosads}The House Ethics Committee previously voted to delay its review of Grimm’s case at the request of the Justice Department and said in a statement it will continue to announce any further deferrals on an annual basis.

Grimm isn’t only under investigation by the Justice Department for the alleged campaign finance issues. He is also under a 20-count federal indictment for employing undocumented immigrants at a Manhattan restaurant he owned prior to serving in Congress and under-reporting the restaurant’s revenue to the IRS. The House Ethics Committee has also deferred its review related to the charges filed against Grimm at the request of the Justice Department.

In June, the House Ethics Committee announced it wouldn’t investigate yet another case regarding the January incident when Grimm threatened to throw NY1 reporter Michael Scotto off a balcony.