Santos pleads guilty to campaign violations

(The Center Square) — Disgraced former New York congressman George Santos pleaded guilty on Monday in a federal court to wire fraud and aggravated identity theft during his 2022 campaign.

The former Republican lawmaker's plea, entered before U.S. District Court Judge Joanna Seybert, avoids his pending trial on 23 counts of fraud, including money laundering, theft of public funds, making false statements to the Federal Election Commission and identity theft. But Santos could still face up to two years in prison when he is sentenced on Feb. 7 on the two felony charges.

“I betrayed the trust of my constituents and supporters," Santos, 36, of Long Island, said in a statement as part of his guilty plea. "I deeply regret my conduct."

Federal prosecutors in New York allege that Santos and his former campaign treasurer, Nancy Marks, submitted false financial reports to the Federal Election Commission, inflating his fundraising numbers. They also allege he fraudulently collected over $24,000 in unemployment insurance benefits. Marks has pleaded guilty to the charges.

A previous indictment filed in May against Santos charged him with embezzling money from his campaign and lying to Congress about his income, among other allegations. He had previously pleaded not guilty to those charges and has confessed his innocence for months. He was scheduled to go to trial in September.

Following Santos' indictment in October, Congress formally expelled Santos in a bipartisan vote after a damaging report from a House ethics subcommittee found “substantial evidence” of misconduct and illegal activity.

Santos, who has admitted to faking his resume and lying about his educational background, also faces a Federal Elections Commission complaint alleging his campaign engaged in a "straw donor scheme" to conceal the sources of a $705,000 personal loan to his campaign.

His expulsion prompted a special election that led to Republicans losing New York's 3rd Congressional District seat to Democrat Tom Suozzi, a former congressman.

In an unrelated ruling on Monday, U.S. District Judge Denise Cote threw out a lawsuit filed by Santos, which claimed that late-night host Jimmy Kimmel violated copyright laws and "unjustly" enriched themselves at his expense by using videos he posted on social media for the show. The judge ruled that Kimmel's use of YouTube clips for criticism and commentary didn't violate the law.