USA: Scandal-hit The US Justice Department has confirmed that Republican congressman George Santos has been detained in New York on a number of federal charges, including fraud, money laundering, and the theft of tax money.
According to a press release posted on the DoJ website on Wednesday, Santos is accused of embezzling contributions from supporters, fraudulently obtaining unemployment benefits, and lying in disclosures to the House of Representatives in a 13-count indictment that was unsealed on Wednesday.
According to Breon Peace, US Attorney for the Eastern District of New York, Santos relied on "repeated dishonesty and deception to ascend to the halls of Congress and enrich himself." Peace continued, "He illegally applied for unemployment benefits that should have gone to New Yorkers who had lost their jobs as a result of the pandemic and used political contributions to line his pockets.
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Santos is accused of defrauding supporters last year under the false pretence that donations would be used to support his election campaign, among other things, according to the indictment. As opposed to that, it claims that these funds were used for his "personal expenses, including luxury designer clothing and credit card payments."
Santos' congressional office or lawyer have not yet made an official statement regarding his arrest. Later on Wednesday, he is scheduled to show up in front of a federal court in New York. It's unclear at this time whether he must enter a plea now or wait until a later court appearance.
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The latest stain on Santos' political résumé is the arrest of the New York-based Republican congressman. Santos' fabrication of many aspects of his background was exposed in reporting by the New York Times and other publications after his election to represent a largely wealthy area of Long Island, New York, in 2022.
Santos misrepresented his educational background by claiming to have attended New York University, and he also made untrue claims about his employment history at Goldman Sachs and Citigroup. Along with fabricating his Jewish ancestry, he also claimed that his grandparents had managed to avoid Nazi persecution during World War II. The politician, who has claimed to be gay, failed to disclose that he was married to a woman for a number of years before their marriage ended in 2019.
Although he had previously denied allegations of criminal wrongdoing, Santos admitted to lying about a significant portion of his stated personal and professional history.