Disgraced Former Rep. George Santos To Begin Seven-year Prison Sentence Today

WASHINGTON — Disgraced erstwhile Rep. George Santos is group to study to situation connected Friday, opening a much than seven-year sentence aft pleading blameworthy to a laundry database of national charges that included ligament fraud, personality theft and money laundering.

The flamboyant New York Republican, who stormed onto nan nationalist shape erstwhile he unexpectedly won a legislature spot successful 2022 and was expelled by his colleagues nan very adjacent year, didn’t spell softly this week. He appeared connected an hour-long podcast, engaged pinch his followers connected X Spaces and posted a bid of farewell tweets connected X. He besides continued to station videos for supporters connected nan Cameo level done Friday morning, charging a minimum of $300 per video, according to nan site.

“Well, darlings …The curtain falls, nan spotlight dims, and nan rhinestones are packed. From nan halls of Congress to nan chaos of cablegram news what a thrust it’s been! Was it messy? Always. Glamorous? Occasionally. Honest? I tried… astir days,” Santos wrote connected X.

“I whitethorn beryllium leaving nan shape (for now), but spot maine legends ne'er genuinely exit," he continued.

In his hour-and-a-half Spaces unrecorded broadcast, Santos, a Donald Trump state successful Congress, said he’s been asked by galore group whether he will get a statesmanlike pardon aliases commutation that could trim short his 87-month sentence.

“The reply to that is, I don’t know. You’re asking nan incorrect person,” he said connected Thursday. “The only personification that tin reply that mobility is, you know, whoever nan president of nan United States is — successful this case, President Donald Trump.”

The White House has not commented connected nan matter.

Santos’ governmental profession was 1 of nan shortest and most tumultuous successful caller memory. Even earlier he was sworn into office, nan New York Times and different outlets revealed that he had fabricated parts of his resume, and nan individual communicative that he shared pinch donors and voters connected nan run way began to autumn apart.

The House Ethics Committee issued a scathing investigative report astir Santos, uncovering he'd apt committed aggregate national crimes, and nan Justice Department indicted him connected 23 counts, including embezzling contributions from supporters, illegally obtaining unemployment benefits and lying connected House financial disclosures.

In nan 2022 midterm elections, Santos had been 1 of 4 Republicans who had flipped Democratic-held seats successful New York. But aft nan indictment and Ethics report, it was those aforesaid New York GOP colleagues who led nan complaint to oust him from Congress.

On Dec. 1, 2023, the House voted 311-114 to expel Santos, making him conscionable nan sixth personification successful U.S. history to beryllium expelled from nan House of Representatives.

After his blameworthy plea, Santos was sentenced to 87 months down bars this past April and ordered to salary almost $374,000 successful restitution and complete $200,000 successful forfeiture.

During his appearances this week, Santos many times expressed remorse for his lies and actions, moreover arsenic he tried to settee governmental scores pinch those who ousted him from Congress.

"I deliberation we tin each attest that I've made a drawstring of s--- choices successful my life, and for that, I'm sorry to those I've disappointed, to those I've fto down, to those that I person caused irreparable damage. I'm sorry. I mean it. I'm not— I'm not placating. This isn't for show," Santos said connected Spaces.

"It's just, life sucks sometimes and life-ing is hard," he said.