Dhe US scandal MP George Santos, who has fallen into disrepute for numerous lies about his CV, has been charged with 13 counts and arrested. The 34-year-old Republican has been charged with fraud, money laundering, theft of public funds and false statements to the House of Representatives, the New York State Attorney’s Office said on Wednesday. Santos was scheduled to appear before a federal judge in Central Islip, Long Island, in the afternoon (local time).
According to prosecutors, the New York congressional freshman is said to have misappropriated campaign donations for personal expenses, including buying designer clothes and paying off debts. He is also said to have unlawfully applied for and received more than $24,000 in unemployment benefits during the coronavirus pandemic prior to his time as an MP. Santos is also charged with providing false income information to the House of Representatives.
Up to 20 years imprisonment
“He used political donations to line his pockets, illegally filed for unemployment benefits that should have gone to New Yorkers who lost their jobs due to the pandemic, and lied to the House of Representatives,” said US Attorney Breon Peace. With the indictment, the young politician should be held “accountable”. According to the public prosecutor’s office, Santos faces up to 20 years in prison if convicted.
US media had already reported on the indictment on Tuesday. The charges were initially unknown. The sealed indictment was then released on Wednesday.
Santos was first elected to the House of Representatives in Washington in November’s midterms. As a result, there were always new revelations about the politician’s sometimes outrageous misrepresentations, including about his university education, his career, his family and his religion.
So Santos sealed a degree from an elite university and falsely claimed to have worked for the investment bank Goldman Sachs and the banking group Citigroup. He also falsely claimed that his mother survived the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks at the World Trade Center and also falsely identified himself as Jewish.
It also became known that a few years ago Santos was investigated for allegedly buying puppies with bad checks for thousands of dollars. In another case, a US veteran accused him of stealing thousands of dollars raised during an online fundraiser for his dog’s surgery. As a member of parliament, he is said to have sexually harassed a job applicant. Santos also caused a stir because he invented a career as a successful college volleyball player.
The MP of Brazilian descent has admitted many of the lies and has said he “embellished” his resume. Basically, it is not forbidden to lie to the public.
Although Santos also came under fire from within his own ranks, he refused to resign. At the end of January, however, he suspended his work on two congressional committees. In early March, the House Ethics Committee launched an investigation into Santos. In mid-April, Santos nevertheless announced that he would run for re-election in 2024. MPs are elected every two years in the United States.
The head of the Chamber of Congress, Republican Kevin McCarthy, has so far rejected penalties against Santos. This is probably also related to the extremely narrow majority of conservatives in the House of Representatives: the Republicans have 222 of the 435 MPs, while President Joe Biden’s Democrats have 213 seats. Republicans can’t afford to lose MPs because of this. McCarthy said Tuesday night when media reported on the charges against Santos that he wanted to “look at” the charges first.
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