US Representative George Santos, who made false statements on his resume, has been charged with 13 counts and arrested. The 34-year-old is accused of fraud, money laundering and false information to the House of Representatives, among other things.
“He used political donations to line his pockets, illegally applied for unemployment benefits that should have gone to New Yorkers who lost their jobs due to the pandemic, and lied to the House of Representatives,” US attorney Breon Peace said. Unemployment benefits, for example, cost more than $24,000 (about $22,000, the equivalent). In another case, a US veteran accused him of stealing thousands of dollars raised during an online fundraiser for his dog’s surgery. With the indictment, Santos should now be held “responsible”.
The politician was first elected to the Washington House of Representatives in the midterm elections in November. As a result, new revelations about him regularly came to light. These include his higher education, career, family and religion. So Santos sealed a degree from an elite university and falsely claimed to have worked for the investment bank Goldman Sachs and the banking group Citigroup. He also claimed that his mother survived the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks at the World Trade Center and also identified herself as Jewish.
Work is partially halted
In fact, the deputy sheriff has Brazilian roots. He has since admitted many of the lies, saying he had “beautified” his resume. Santos came under fire within his own ranks, but refused to resign. At the end of January, however, he gave up his work on two congressional committees. In early March, the House Ethics Committee launched an investigation into Santos. In mid-April, Santos announced that he would seek re-election in 2024. Members of Parliament are elected every two years in the United States.
So far, Speaker of the House of Congress Kevin McCarthy has denied sanctions against Santos. This is probably related to the extremely narrow majority of the Conservatives in the House of Representatives. In the meantime, the chairman indicates that he first wants to “look at” the indictment. If convicted, Santos faces up to 20 years in prison.
Source: Krone
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