Rep. George Santos charged by federal prosecutors
NEW YORK - Law enforcement sources have told FOX 5 New York that federal prosecutors plan to file charges against New York Congressman George Santos.
The Republican from New York has admitted to lying about a slew of claims related to his personal and professional history, including being from a Jewish family of holocaust survivors, being a son who lost his mother in the 9/11 attacks, working at Wall Street giant Goldman Sachs and being a star volleyball player.
But experts say federal prosecutors would not be interested in those lies. Their interest would be violating campaign finance laws, and how his campaign raised and spent money.
"When they fill out federal election forms, they have to be truthful, of course, because you sign it under oath or you submitted it as though it were under oath," said Gene Rossi, a former federal prosecutor and Adjunct Professor at Harvard Law School.
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Santos, a Republican currently representing New York's 3rd District, has been accused of lying about large swaths of his background and accomplishments.
Rossi says the feds are most likely focusing on the more than $750,000 Santos says he made from a family company and then loaned that money to his campaign and political action committees.
He filed that claim with the Federal Election Commission. However, in 2020, he filed a financial statement with the clerk of the U.S. House saying he had no assets and a yearly income of 55 thousand dollars.
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"He gave the impression that he was a pauper. He didn't have a lot of money and voila, like a magician, he comes up with 750 thousand dollars. So what they're looking at and what they probably took grand jury testimony on is the source of that income. Who gave it to him. Where it went," said Rossi.
We will not know the details of the charges until Santos appears in court, but Rossi says even if Santos is convicted, he would still be allowed to serve in Congress unless the House of Representatives chooses to expel him.