Current:Home > MyEthermac|Rep. Santos faces new charges he stole donor IDs, made unauthorized charges to their credit cards -FutureWise Finance
Ethermac|Rep. Santos faces new charges he stole donor IDs, made unauthorized charges to their credit cards
Poinbank Exchange View
Date:2025-04-09 00:43:13
NEW YORK (AP) — A new indictment filed Tuesday charged U.S. Rep. George Santos with stealing the identities of donors to his campaign and Ethermacthen using their credit cards to ring up tens of thousands of dollars in unauthorized charges.
Prosecutors said some of that stolen money ended up in his own bank account.
The 23-count indictment replaces one filed earlier against the New York Republican charging him with embezzling money from his campaign and lying to Congress about his wealth, among other offenses.
The new charges include allegations that he charged more than $44,000 to his campaign over a period of months using cards belonging to contributors without their knowledge. In one case, he charged $12,000 to a contributor’s credit card and transferred the “vast majority” of that money into his personal bank account, prosecutors said.
Santos is also accused of falsely reporting to the Federal Elections Commission that he had loaned $500,000 to his campaign in an attempt to convince Republican Party officials that he was a serious candidate, when he actually had less than $8,000 in his personal accounts.
“As alleged, Santos is charged with stealing people’s identities and making charges on his own donors’ credit cards without their authorization, lying to the FEC and, by extension, the public about the financial state of his campaign,” U.S. Attorney Breon Peace said in a statement.
Santos did not immediately return a text and a phone message seeking comment. He has previously maintained his innocence, insisting he is the victim of a “witch hunt.”
The new charges deepen the legal peril for Santos, who likely faces a lengthy prison term if convicted. So far, he has resisted all calls to resign, insisting he intends to run for reelection next year.
Santos’ personal and professional biography as a wealthy businessman began to unravel soon after winning election to represent Long Island and Queens last year, revealing a tangled web of deception.
In addition to lying to voters — about his distinguished Wall Street background, Jewish heritage, academic and athletic achievements, animal rescue work, real estate holdings and more — Santos is accused of carrying out numerous fraud schemes meant to enrich himself and mislead his donors.
He was initially arrested in May on a 13-count federal indictment, which charged him with using funds earmarked for campaign expenses on designer clothes and other personal expenses and improperly obtaining unemployment benefits meant for Americans who lost work because of the pandemic.
Free on bail while awaiting trial, Santos has described his litany of lies as victimless embellishments, while blaming some of his financial irregularities on his former treasurer, Nancy Marks, who he claims “went rogue.”
Last week, Marks, a longtime Long Island political bookkeeper and close aide to Santos, pleaded guilty to a fraud conspiracy charge, telling a judge that she helped her former boss hoodwink prospective donors and Republican party officials by submitting bogus campaign finance reports.
Tuesday’s indictment said Marks and Santos were involved in the same scheme to fake a $500,000 campaign loan in order to meet a benchmark that would unlock additional support from a Republican Party committee. Santos has now also been charged with recording fake donations from at least 10 people, all his or Marks’ relatives, as part of the same effort to make the campaign look like it hit those fundraising goals.
Santos was not initially charged in the criminal complaint against Marks, but was identified in court papers as a “co-conspirator.”
The new indictment alleges a multi-part fraud by Santos, who allegedly duped both his donors and his family members.
In one instance, Santos allegedly swiped the credit card information of one of his contributors, who had already donated $5,800 to the campaign, to give himself an additional $15,800 in payments, the indictment said. Because the unauthorized charges exceeded contribution limits under federal law, Santos listed the additional payments as coming from his own unwitting relatives, prosecutors allege.
Financial questions have continued to swirl around Santos, who claimed to be rich but spent much of his adulthood bouncing between low-paying jobs and unemployment, while fending off eviction cases and two separatecriminal charges relating to his use of bad checks.
A separate fundraiser for Santos, Sam Miele, was also previously indicted on federal charges that he impersonated a high-ranking congressional aide while soliciting contributions for the Republican’s campaign.
Prosecutors said Miele, 27, impersonated the former chief of staff to GOP Rep. Kevin McCarthy, who at the time was the House minority leader, by setting up dummy email addresses that resembled the staffer’s name.
Miele’s attorney, Kevin Marino, previously predicted his client would be exonerated at trial.
veryGood! (996)
Related
- Tom Holland's New Venture Revealed
- 15 Secrets About the OG Mean Girls That Are Still Totally Grool
- Nick Saban won seven national championships. Ranking them from best to worst
- Todd and Julie Chrisley receive $1M settlement in 2019 lawsuit against tax official
- Buckingham Palace staff under investigation for 'bar brawl'
- The Alabama job is open. What makes it one of college football's most intriguing?
- Pizza Hut offering free large pizza in honor of Guest Appreciation Day
- Trial of woman charged in alleged coverup of Jennifer Dulos killing begins in Connecticut
- Highlights from Trump’s interview with Time magazine
- 27 Rental Friendly Décor Hacks That Will Help You Get Your Deposit Back
Ranking
- Trump suggestion that Egypt, Jordan absorb Palestinians from Gaza draws rejections, confusion
- Senate border talks broaden to include Afghan evacuees, migrant work permits and high-skilled visas
- UN concerned over Taliban arrests of Afghan women and girls for alleged Islamic headscarf violations
- 213 deaths were caused by Japan’s New Year’s quake. 8 happened in the alleged safety of shelters
- Are Instagram, Facebook and WhatsApp down? Meta says most issues resolved after outages
- Ranking NFL playoff teams by viability: Who's best positioned to reach Super Bowl 58?
- Who could replace Pete Carroll? Dan Quinn among six top options for next Seahawks coach
- Alaska Airlines cancels all flights on the Boeing 737 Max 9 through Saturday
Recommendation
Toyota to invest $922 million to build a new paint facility at its Kentucky complex
Speaker Johnson is facing conservative pushback over the spending deal he struck with Democrats
Hundreds gather in Ukraine’s capital to honor renowned poet who was also a soldier killed in action
Efforts to restrict transgender health care endure in 2024, with more adults targeted
Rams vs. 49ers highlights: LA wins rainy defensive struggle in key divisional game
Alaska Airlines cancels all flights on 737 Max 9 planes through Saturday
Trial of woman charged in alleged coverup of Jennifer Dulos killing begins in Connecticut
What is the birthstone for February? A guide to the month's captivating gem.