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Former Rep. George Santos posted a theatrical farewell on social media Thursday night time, simply hours earlier than he was to start serving a federal jail sentence for fraud and id theft.
“Properly, darlings… The curtain falls, the highlight dims, and the rhinestones are packed,” Santos wrote on X.
“From the halls of Congress to the chaos of cable information what a trip it’s been! Was it messy? At all times. Glamorous? Sometimes. Trustworthy? I attempted… most days. To my supporters: You made this wild political cabaret price it. To my critics: Thanks for the free press.”
The previous New York congressman is predicted to report back to federal custody Friday to start serving an 87-month sentence, simply over seven years, after pleading responsible in 2024 to wire fraud and aggravated id theft.
Santos was assessed the utmost sentence in April by U.S. District Choose Joanna Seybert. He was additionally ordered to pay practically $374,000 in restitution and forfeit greater than $205,000 in fraud proceeds.
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Santos is certainly one of solely six members of the Home of Representatives in historical past to have been expelled. (AP Photograph/Alex Brandon)
His responsible plea adopted a sweeping investigation into marketing campaign finance fraud, donor id theft and false COVID-era unemployment claims.
“This prosecution speaks to the reality that my workplace is dedicated to aggressively rooting out public corruption,” stated U.S. Legal professional John J. Durham, who referred to as the sentence “judgment day” for Santos and justice for his victims. Nassau County District Legal professional Anne T. Donnelly stated Santos “traded in his integrity for designer garments and a luxurious way of life.”
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Former U.S. Rep. George Santos arrives at courtroom in Central Islip, N.Y., Aug. 19, 2024. (AP Photograph/Stefan Jeremiah)
Prosecutors shared how Santos and his marketing campaign treasurer, Nancy Marks, doctored donor experiences to qualify for nationwide Republican occasion funding. They fabricated contributions from Santos’ household and falsely reported a $500,000 mortgage from Santos, although he had underneath $8,000 in his accounts.
He additionally stole bank card info from donors, together with “victims he knew had been aged individuals affected by cognitive impairment or decline” and made unauthorized costs to fund each marketing campaign and private bills, in response to the DOJ. Santos additionally used a faux political fundraising firm to solicit tens of hundreds of {dollars} which he spent on “designer clothes.”
In the course of the pandemic, Santos fraudulently claimed over $24,000 in unemployment advantages whereas employed at an funding agency. He additionally submitted false congressional monetary disclosures to the Home.
In accordance with the DOJ, Santos purposefully focused aged individuals with “cognitive impairment or decline” in id theft schemes. (Annabelle Gordon/Bloomberg through Getty Pictures)
Santos was elected in 2022 after flipping New York’s third District for the GOP. His résumé was simply debunked. He falsely claimed educational levels, Wall Avenue jobs and household ties to the Holocaust and 9/11.
He was expelled from Congress in December 2023 after a scathing ethics report, changing into simply the sixth member ever faraway from the Folks’s Home.
Santos has remained publicly lively after his sentencing, promoting video messages on Cameo and making social media posts.
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His tweet concluded, “I could also be leaving the stage (for now), however belief me legends by no means really exit.”
Until pardoned, Santos is predicted to stay incarcerated till not less than early 2032. He has reportedly appealed to President Donald Trump for clemency.
The White Home and Santos didn’t instantly reply to Fox Information Digital’s request for remark.
