George Santos pleads not responsible to federal indictment and says he received’t resign

By JAKE OFFENHARTZ and MICHAEL R. SISAK Related Press

U.S. Rep. George Santos, notorious for fabricating his life story, pleaded not responsible Wednesday to expenses he duped donors, stole from his marketing campaign and lied to Congress about being a millionaire, all whereas dishonest to gather unemployment advantages he didn’t deserve.

Afterward, he stated he wouldn’t drop his reelection bid and defied calls to resign.

Santos’ 13-count federal indictment was a reckoning for an internet of fraud and deceit that prosecutors say overlapped with the New York Republican’s fantastical public picture as a rich businessman — a fictional biography that started to unravel after he received election final fall.

Santos, 34, was launched on $500,000 bond following his arraignment, about 5 hours after turning himself in to face expenses of wire fraud, cash laundering, theft of public funds and making false statements to Congress. He surrendered his passport and will withstand 20 years in jail if convicted.

“That is the start of the power for me to deal with and defend myself,” a cheerfully combative Santos advised reporters swarming him exterior a Lengthy Island federal courthouse. He stated he’s been cooperating with the investigation and vowed to battle the prosecution, which he labeled a “witch hunt.”

His lawyer, Joseph Murray, was extra circumspect, saying: “Any time the federal authorities comes after you it’s a severe case. We’ve got to take this severe.”

Santos stated he deliberate to return to Washington, the place the indictment is amplifying doubts concerning the freshman’s skill to serve. Home Republican leaders are taking a wait-and-see strategy, saying Santos is harmless till confirmed responsible. Others are reiterating earlier requires Santos to step apart.

“I feel we’re seeing that the wheels of justice grind gradual, however they grind positive,” stated Sen. Mitt Romney, a Utah Republican who confronted Santos on the Home ground at President Joe Biden’s State of the Union tackle in February.

Requested about Santos on Wednesday, Biden stated, “I’m not commenting,” including that something he stated could be construed by some interfering within the investigation. Requested if Congress ought to expel Santos, Biden stated, “That’s for Congress to determine.”

Among the many allegations, prosecutors say Santos created an organization after which induced supporters to donate to it below the false pretense that the cash could be used to assist his marketing campaign. As an alternative, they are saying, he used the cash for private bills, together with designer garments and bank card and automobile funds.

Santos is also accused of mendacity about his funds on congressional disclosure types and acquiring unemployment advantages whereas he was making $120,000 as regional director of an funding agency that the federal government shut down in 2021 over allegations that it was a Ponzi scheme.

The indictment “seeks to carry Santos accountable for varied alleged fraudulent schemes and brazen misrepresentations,” U.S. Lawyer Breon Peace stated. “Taken collectively, the allegations within the indictment cost Santos with counting on repeated dishonesty and deception to ascend to the halls of Congress and enrich himself.”

Santos didn’t straight tackle the specifics of the fees to reporters, however when requested why he obtained unemployment advantages whereas employed, Santos cited a job change and confusion throughout the COVID-19 pandemic.

Santos, sporting his standard crewneck sweater, blazer and khakis, stated little throughout the arraignment, which lasted about quarter-hour. Reporters spilled from the gallery to the jury field, joined by a handful of constituents.

“He needs to be thrown out of Congress and put in jail,” declared Jeff Herzberg, a Lengthy Island resident who spent hours ready to see Santos’ arraignment. “I hope that day comes quickly.”

Santos was elected to Congress final fall after a marketing campaign constructed partly on falsehoods. He advised individuals he was a rich Wall Avenue dealmaker with a considerable actual property portfolio who had been a star volleyball participant in school, amongst different issues.

In actuality, Santos didn’t work on the huge monetary companies he stated employed him, didn’t go to varsity and struggled financially earlier than getting into politics. He claimed he fueled his run largely with self-made riches earned from brokering offers on costly toys for rich shoppers, however the indictment alleges these boasts have been additionally exaggerated.

In a Home monetary disclosure type, Santos reported making $750,000 a yr from a household firm, the Devolder Group, however the expenses unsealed Wednesday allege that Santos by no means obtained that sum, nor the $1 million and $5 million in dividends he listed as coming from the agency.

Santos has described the Devolder Group as a dealer for gross sales of luxurious gadgets like yachts and plane. The enterprise was integrated in Florida shortly after Santos stopped working for Harbor Metropolis Capital, the corporate accused by federal authorities of working an unlawful Ponzi scheme.

In November 2021, Santos shaped Redstone Methods, a Florida firm that federal prosecutors say he used to dupe donors into financing his life-style. Based on the indictment, Santos advised an affiliate to solicit contributions to the corporate and gave the particular person contact data for potential donors.

Emails to potential donors falsely claimed the corporate was shaped “completely” to help Santos’ election bid and that there could be no limits on how a lot they might contribute, the indictment stated. Santos falsely claimed the cash could be spent on tv adverts and different marketing campaign bills, it stated.

However a month earlier than his election, Santos transferred about $74,000 from the corporate to financial institution accounts he maintained, the indictment stated. He additionally transferred cash to a few of his associates, it stated.

Santos’ authorized troubles date to his late teenagers, when he was investigated in Brazil for allegedly utilizing stolen checks to purchase garments — a case that authorities say they’ve since reopened.

In 2017, Santos was charged with theft in Pennsylvania for allegedly utilizing hundreds of {dollars} in bogus checks to purchase puppies from breeders. That case was dismissed after Santos claimed his checkbook was stolen and another person took the canines.

Federal authorities have individually been trying into complaints about Santos’ fundraising for a gaggle that purported to assist abused pets. A New Jersey veteran accused Santos of failing to ship $3,000 he raised to assist his canine get wanted surgical procedure.

Related Press writers Seung Min Kim in White Plains, New York, Farnoush Amiri in Washington and Alanna Durkin Richer in Boston contributed to this report.