Former Republican congressman Jorge Santos pleaded guilty to wire fraud and aggravated identity theft in a federal fraud case, marking another low point for a politician known for the outlandish lies and fantasies he peddled in his short but high-profile political career.
In an emotional statement during the hearing, Santos said, “I understand that my actions have betrayed my supporters and constituents. I owe it to myself to make amends and learn from this experience.”
The disgraced former congressman faces a two-year mandatory minimum sentence under federal guidelines, but U.S. District Judge Jonah Sebert estimated the sentence at six to eight years when he returns to court on February 7.
Santos, 36, has pleaded not guilty to various financial crimes, including lying to Congress about his wealth, collecting unemployment benefits while actually working and using campaign contributions for personal expenses.
The New York Republican entered the plea in a Long Island courtroom just weeks before his trial began in early September. The possibility of a plea deal was raised late last week when prosecutors and Santos’ attorneys requested an impromptu court hearing. Before the deal, two Santos campaign aides had already pleaded guilty to related crimes.
Santos was once touted as a rising political star after flipping a suburban Long Island district in New York state. But while his story is in the glare of public life, reports are emerging that he has lied about a career at top Wall Street firms and a college degree, among other questions about his biography.
Even in Donald Trump’s Republican Party, where truth-telling scandals have become an almost daily occurrence, Santos has managed to garner a lot of negative attention. Members of his own party attacked him demanding his resignation.
Then new scandals surfaced about his campaign finances.
Santos was originally indicted on federal charges in May 2023, but refused to resign. Santos was expelled from Congress after an ethics investigation found “overwhelming evidence” that he broke the law and used his public position for his own gain.
Following the plea, U.S. Attorney Brion Pease said that after years of telling lies, Santos “finally told the truth — the truth is he’s a criminal.”
“As a result he will finally be held accountable for his actions, he will go to jail for at least two years, forfeit his ill-gotten gains and pay restitution to the victims he defrauded,” Chand said.
Peace added that the government recognized it was a “sad day when an elected official admitted to criminal activity”. Residents of Santos’ congressional district elected him “to represent them with honor and integrity.”
“Instead they were badly duped and learned that they were the victims of a fraud of unprecedented proportions, and they had to watch helplessly as Santos entered Congress on a campaign of lies,” he said.
Separately on Monday, in Manhattan federal court, Judge Denise Cote tossed out a lawsuit that claimed Santos, late-night host Jimmy Kimmel, ABC and Disney had engaged in copyright infringement and unfairly enriched themselves by using videos she made in cameos. App for Jimmy Kimmel Live! Sect.
It is clear that Kimmel used the clips posted on YouTube for purposes of criticism and commentary, which the judge said was fair use.
Santos started selling personalized videos on Cameo shortly after he was kicked out of Congress. He then started, then quickly dropped out, and began a long-running bid to return to Congress as an independent earlier this year.
Prosecutors sought to admit into evidence some of the financial lies Santos told during his campaign, including that Santos worked at Citigroup and Goldman Sachs and that he ran a family-run company with about $80 million in assets.
Two Santos campaign aides who have already pleaded guilty to crimes related to the former congressman’s campaign, including his former treasurer Nancy Marks, pleaded guilty in October to one count of fraud conspiracy and implicated Santos in a scheme to embellish his campaign finance reports.
Former Santos fundraiser Sam Miele pleaded guilty to federal wire fraud charges a month later, admitting to impersonating a high-ranking congressional aide while raising money for Santos’ campaign.
Earlier this year, he began a long campaign to return to Congress as an independent. After that failed, he said he was happy to be “a bit of a private citizen” again.
“I don’t really miss the rubber chicken parties and the rah-rah-rah parties and fundraisers,” he said of his short-lived political career as an elected politician.
The Associated Press contributed to this report
