Former Congressman George Santos sentenced to over 7 years in prison for fraud

Judge Joanna Seybert finally revealed Friday the sentence of controversial former congressman George Santos: 87 months in prison. The saga of the Republican, a succession of controversies, thus ends with a conviction for wire fraud and identity theft, charges for which he himself had pleaded guilty.

Of Brazilian origin, the politician successfully ran for the House in 2022 presenting himself as the new face of the Republican Party. Homosexual, young and of Brazilian origin, he won his seat in a blue district of New York.

As was later revealed, his campaign was riddled with fabrications: he lied about his assets, his studies, his religion and even his family history, claiming, among others, to be descended from Holocaust survivors and that his mother was at the World Trade Center on 9/11.

Santos appropriated thousands of dollars from his donors during the legislative campaign, spending it on Botox, luxury clothes, and cosmetics. He fraudulently collected unemployment benefits. He lied to Congress.

As the irregularities were uncovered, more and more voices within the House called for his removal. In December 2023, they voted to expel him. His first reaction: "To hell with this place."

More than half a year later he entered into a plea agreement with the prosecution. The pact included financial penalties of more than $500,000. However, they still disagreed on how long he should spend behind bars: Santos asked for two years, the prosecution asked for more than seven.

The latter claimed he had not truly repented, citing posts he made on social networks, such as one in which he appeared to deny conduct admitted in the agreement: the use of campaign funds to buy Hermes products. "That's a false statement that has been passed on as truth!" wrote Santos according to a screenshot by journalist Kyle Cheney.

The judge complied with the prosecutor's request. She gave Santos until July 25 to turn himself in.