George Santos in custody: Republican prepares to appear in court
Long Island liar George Santos in custody: Republican is indicted on 13 federal charges including money laundering and wire fraud and charged with donating money to buy designer clothes and cover his debts
- Charges say he received $24,000 in unemployment benefits while on the job
- He was then raking in $120,000 a year
- Reportedly took $25,000 from campaign donors, transferred to personal account
Republican Representative George Santos is in custody after being indicted on 13 federal charges, as the FBI spells fraud and bribery charges.
The Long Island liar who fabricated his resume is in court in New York preparing to face a judge.
New York’s Eastern District unsealed the charges Wednesday morning, on a day Santos surrendered to federal authorities.
The charges include seven counts of wire fraud, three counts of money laundering, one count of theft of public funds and two counts of making false statements to the House of Representatives.
“This indictment seeks to hold Santos accountable for several alleged fraudulent schemes and gross misrepresentations,” US Attorney Breon Peace said.
Taken together, the charges in the indictment accuse Santos of relying on repeated dishonesty and deceit to go to the halls of Congress and enrich himself.
Republican Representative George Santos is in custody after being charged on federal charges
He used political contributions to line his pockets, falsely claimed unemployment benefits that should have gone to New Yorkers who lost their jobs due to the pandemic, and lied to the House of Representatives.
“My Office and our law enforcement partners will continue to aggressively root out corruption and self-dealing in our community’s public institutions and hold public officials accountable to the voters who elected them.”
The charges related to unemployment benefits may have an additional political sting, as the benefits bring money from the state whose voters sent him to Washington.
Prosecutors say he took those benefits while receiving income.
“At the height of the pandemic in 2020, George Santos would have applied for and received unemployment benefits while employed and running for Congress,” DA Anne Donnelly said.
As charged in the indictment, the defendant’s alleged conduct continued during his second run for Congress, when he pocketed campaign contributions and used those funds to pay personal debts and buy designer clothes. ‘
At the time, Santos was raking in $120,000 a year from his Florida-based investment firm.
The alleged scheme earned him $24,000 in unemployment benefits.
The indictment also details a “fraudulent” scheme in which Santos defrauded political supporters by telling a political consultant to inform donors that their contributions were intended to elect him to Congress. That prompted two donors to transfer $25,000 to the bank account of an LLC controlled by Santos.
Santos then took that money and transferred it to his personal bank accounts, according to the indictment. “Santos would then have used much of that money for personal expenses” — including designer clothes, cash withdrawals and paying off debt.
The FBI also accuses Santos of making false statements to Congress about his required financial disclosures.
More to follow