BROOKLYN — An ex-girlfriend of Rep. Michael Grimm pleaded not guilty after being charged with campaign finance fraud Monday, the Daily News reported.
Diana Durand, 48, was arrested in January and charged with violating campaign finance laws for using straw donors to funnel money into Grimm's 2010 campaign. Her lawyer, Stuart Kaplan, argued that Durand didn't know she was doing anything wrong.
"My client is not a sophisticated woman," Kaplan told the News.
The Texas woman was hit with a three-count indictment by prosecutors for paying back donors for contributions — totalling $10,600 —to Grimm's campaign, according to the News.
Prosecutors claim it was an effort to skirt laws that limit donation amounts from individuals.
Her lawyer told the News that Durand did not know it was illegal to pay back money to the donors, and suggested her defense will show she did not willfully commit a crime if it goes to trial.
Durand's arraignment comes a week after Grimm's own at Brooklyn Federal Court. Last Monday, Grimm, 44, who represents Staten Island and parts of Brooklyn, was charged with a 20 count indictment after feds said he skimmed more than a $1 million in profits from an Upper East Side restaurant.
Grimm was also accused of hiring undocumented workers and committing perjury when asked about the business in 2013. He accused prosecutors of conducting a "political witch hunt."
"Time and time again I have shown that I don't abandon my post. I didn't abandon my post when I was fired on in combat... I'm not abandoning my post now," Grimm said outside of court.
"We're going to fight tooth and nail until I am fully exonerated. I will not abandon my post or the wonderful people who entrusted me to represent them. I have their backs and I know that they have mine."
