George Santos, the former congressman from New York, pleaded guilty on Monday to two federal crimes: wire fraud and aggravated identity theft, according to The Associated Press. This development is part of a plea deal with the Justice Department, which indicted Santos on 23 counts of fraud, identity theft and making false statements. He was scheduled to go on trial in September.
Santos was expelled from Congress in December 2023 — weeks after a Republican colleague introduced the resolution in the House of Representatives. The resolution was filed after a House Ethics panel released a report that said there was “overwhelming evidence” of lawbreaking by Santos. The report said Santos knowingly caused his campaign committee to file incomplete reports with the Federal Election Commission and used campaign funds for personal expenses, including luxury items and Botox injections.
Santos served in Congress for about a year, but faced scrutiny almost immediately after winning his election. He admitted to lying about his background, including his education and work history. Santos also claimed he was "a proud American Jew," the grandson of Ukrainian Holocaust survivors.
However, genealogical research found no Jewish ancestry in Santos' family. After being removed from the House of Representatives, Santos launched a short-lived independent run for Congress. He also began offering videos on the platform Cameo, which allows people to purchase content from the former congressman.
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