NEW YORK – Ancient US Representative Michael Grimm, A New York Republican who resigned from Congress following a tax fraud conviction is paralyzed from the chest down after being thrown from a horse during a polo tournament, according to friends who are raising money to pay the ex-lawmaker’s medical care.

Grimm, 54, suffered a devastating injury in September and is currently being treated at the Kessler Institute for Rehabilitation in New Jersey, where the late actor Christopher Reeve was treated after a similar horse riding accident in 1995, according to Vincent Ignizio, a friend of Grimm’s and former New York City Council member.

Grimm had been an avid polo player for years, Ignizio said. “It was a passion of his and he suffered a tragic accident at the end of September,” said Ignizio, who started a GoFundMe account to pay for Grimm’s medical care.

A former Navy and FBI agent, Grimm represented Staten Island and part of Brooklyn in Congress from 2011 to 2015.

A federal investigation into Grimm’s fundraising that began in 2012 ultimately resulted in a 20-count indictment centered on a restaurant Grimm ran in Manhattan. Prosecutors said he failed to report his wages and income to the government and filed false tax documents.

Grimm won re-election in 2014 despite the indictment, but pleaded guilty the following month to one count of tax fraud. He resigned from Congress in January 2015 and served eight months in prison.

Grimm attempted a comeback in 2018 but lost a Republican primary for his former district to incumbent Rep. Dan Donovan, who then lost the general election to Democrat Max Rose.

Republican Rep. Nicole Malliotakis defeated Rose in 2020 and has represented the district since then.

Grimm recently worked as a host on Newsmax.

The GoFundMe for Grimm’s medical care had raised $118,000 as of midday as of Monday. “His ultimate goal is to be able to walk again,” Ignizio said.