George Santos sentenced to 7 years on fraud, identity theft charges
Former New York Republican Representative George Santos has been sentenced to 87 months (over seven years) in prison for wire fraud and aggravated identity theft related to his 2022 congressional campaign. Santos, who gained notoriety for fabricating various aspects of his life story to mislead donors and government officials, pleaded guilty to multiple charges including embezzlement and fraudulently claiming unemployment benefits. Prosecutors had sought a lengthy sentence, arguing that Santos showed no remorse and portrayed himself as a victim on social media. His sentencing follows a series of scandals, including being expelled from Congress for lying about his education and financial history, and misusing campaign funds for personal expenses. despite his legal troubles, Santos has attempted to monetize his notoriety through platforms like Cameo and has launched a podcast. In recent interviews,he has expressed contradictory views about seeking a pardon,indicating both interest and denial. Santos’s dramatic rise and fall highlight the complexities of his political career and legal ramifications.
George Santos sentenced to seven years in prison on wire fraud and identity theft charges
Former New York Republican Rep. George Santos, who was accused of falsifying much of his life story to dupe donors and the government, was sentenced Friday to 87 months, more than seven years, in prison on wire fraud and aggravated identity theft charges related to his 2022 midterm campaign.
Just weeks before Santos was to stand trial last year, he pleaded guilty to wire fraud, identity theft, and a host of other crimes that included embezzling funds from his backers and fraudulently collecting unemployment.
Under the law, Santos was required to serve at least two years in prison, the minimum allowed for aggravated identity theft, followed by probation, but prosecutors sought 87 months. Prosecutors got their wish. He will also have to serve two years supervised release.
They argued in an April 17 letter to U.S. district judge Joanna Seybert that Santos remained “unrepentant” and had not shown true remorse.
They cited a series of social media posts in which he referred to the U.S. Department of Justice as a “cabal of pedophiles” and painted himself as the victim of prosecutorial overreach.
In an April 5 X post, Santos claimed, “The DOJ gets to step on my neck in T-20 days!”
Two days later, he posted a picture of himself on X and wrote: “Category is: Scapegoat!” followed by a peace sign emoji.
Santos defended his actions, writing, “Every sunrise since that plea has carried the same realization: I did this, me. I am responsible. But saying I’m sorry doesn’t require me to sit quietly while these prosecutors try to drop an anvil on my head.”
Friday’s sentencing caps a dramatic rise and fall for the 36-year-old Republican whose tall tales became more outrageous as time went on.
Soon after Santos won his bid for Congress, reports emerged that he lied about his work history, finances, family, background, and education. Santos had claimed he was a star volleyball player in college, that his mother was at the World Trade Center on Sept. 11, 2001, and that he founded a charity that rescued thousands of cats and dogs.
Despite revelations he was a serial liar, Santos was sworn into Congress in January 2023.
In May of that year, federal prosecutors charged him with money laundering, fraud, and stealing public funds. At the time, Santos proclaimed his innocence and refused to resign from office, despite a growing group of lawmakers demanding his exit. Months later, prosecutors slapped him with new charges, claiming that he had stolen people’s identities and inflated fundraising numbers to qualify for a program that supported GOP candidates.
In November 2023, the House Ethics Committee announced it had uncovered evidence that Santos stole money from his own campaign and used it to buy Botox, go on shopping sprees at Sephora and Hermes, and to pay for OnlyFans subscriptions. Santos, still unwilling to admit guilt, called the bipartisan Ethics Committee report a “politicized smear.”
His lies eventually caught up to him the following month when the House voted to expel him, making Santos the sixth member ever to be kicked out of the lower chamber. The resolution passed 311 to 114, with 105 Republicans joining a majority of Democrats to oust him.
When the vote was over, Santos told reporters that lawmakers “just set a new dangerous precedent for themselves.”
He added, ‘To hell with this place.”
Following his epic fall, Santos has tried to monetize his infamy, offering up personalized videos on Cameo. On Wednesday, he urged fans to book quickly and announced it would be his “last day” of recoding videos on Cameo for an undetermined amount of time.”
He also started a podcast in December called “Pants on Fire.” His guests included Joe Exotic, the “Tiger King,” as well as members of Santos’s criminal defense team.
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In an interview with the New York Times, Santos, an ardent supporter of President Donald Trump, Elon Musk, and Attorney General Pam Bondi, claimed he would not seek a pardon.
However, on his podcast, he told guest Perez Hilton, “You bet your sweet ass I would.”
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