Former U.S. Representative George Anthony Devolder Santos pleaded guilty to wire fraud and aggravated identity theft, admitting to a range of fraudulent activities during his campaign for the U.S. House of Representatives. Santos, 36, acknowledged that he filed false reports with the Federal Election Commission (FEC), embezzled funds from campaign donors, and stole identities, among other crimes. His actions undermined the integrity of the electoral process, violating laws designed to provide accurate financial information to the public regarding campaign funding and personal finances of candidates.
Santos and his campaign treasurer, Nancy Marks, orchestrated a scheme to inflate fundraising numbers in order to qualify for financial support from a national party committee. They falsely reported that numerous family members had contributed significant amounts to the campaign, while, in reality, these individuals had not authorized any contributions. To further deceive the committee and the public, Santos reported that he had loaned substantial sums to his campaign, even though he had minimal personal funds available.
In addition to the campaign fraud, Santos engaged in credit card fraud by stealing personal information from contributors and charging their cards without authorization. He also misled potential political supporters about how their donations would be used, redirecting funds to his personal accounts for personal expenses, including designer clothing and cash withdrawals. Furthermore, he committed unemployment insurance fraud by falsely claiming to be unemployed while he was actually receiving a salary from a Florida-based investment firm.
Santos is scheduled to be sentenced on February 7, 2025, and faces a mandatory minimum of two years in prison, with a maximum possible sentence of 22 years. As part of his guilty plea, he will pay restitution of $373,749.97 and forfeiture of $205,002.97. The prosecution emphasized the commitment to rooting out public corruption and holding accountable those who abuse their positions of trust for personal gain.
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