What is George Santos accused of? Looking back at allegations after guilty plea

Moments after former Rep. George Santos pleaded guilty to wire fraud and identity theft , he told reporters that he was doing the right thing by recognizing his lies.

"Pleading guilty is a step I never imagined I’d take, but it is a necessary one because it is the right thing to do," the New York Republican said on Monday. "It’s not only a recognition of my misrepresentation to others, but more profoundly, it is my own recognition of the lies I told myself over these past years."

The plea comes nearly a year after he was indicted on 23 counts , including laundering campaign funds to pay for personal expenses, charging donor' credit cards and accepting unemployment benefits while he was working. He would have gone to trial in September had he not reached a plea agreement with prosecutors.

"Today, for what may seem like the first time since he started his campaign for Congress, Mr. Santos told the truth about his criminal schemes," U.S. Attorney Breon Peace said in a news release. "His flagrant and disgraceful conduct has been exposed and will be punished."

U.S. District Judge Joanna Seybert said that Santos could face up to eight years in prison at his sentencing on Feb. 7. At minimum, he faces two years in prison and agreed to pay nearly $374,000 under terms of the plea agreement.

Here's a look at all the allegations against the former politician in the short time since he joined Congress in January 2023, including lying about being Jewish and the grandson of a Holocaust survivor.

Why was George Santos expelled from Congress?

The House of Representative's voted 311-114 to expel Santos from office in December after he was indicted on the charges .

Before Santos' ousting, a House Ethics Committee report found substantial evidence that he committed federal crimes and misused campaign funds for personal expenses, like purchasing Botox and luxury apparel brands.

The report included more than 170,000 pages of documents, testimony from witnesses and financial statements alleging that Santos attempted to "exploit" his House campaign, deceive donors and lied about his campaign finances.

Both Democrats and Republicans called for Santos' resignation before the ousting. Lawmakers who voted against expelling him voiced concerns that doing so was premature as he had not been convicted.

Santos heavily denied the report's findings at the time, calling the investigators "biased."

What did the ethics committee find?

The ethics committee's report found that Santos fabricated multiple parts of his past, including that he worked at Goldman Sachs investment bank.

A subcommittee formed to investigate the former congressman probe reported "a complex web of unlawful activity involving Representative Santos’ campaign, personal, and business finances."

"Representative George Santos cannot be trusted," the subcommittee report said. "At nearly every opportunity, he placed his desire for private gain above his duty to uphold the Constitution, federal law, and ethical principles."

Santos lied about being Jewish and grandson of Holocaust survivors

Other lies by Santos include claiming to be the grandson of Holocaust survivors and that he is Jewish.

He claimed his maternal grandfather was forced to flee from Ukraine to Brazil to escape Nazism, CNN reported.

In December 2022, the New York Times reported that Santos lied about where he went to college, his bank job and falsifying records relating to his financial status.

Weeks later, Santos told the New York Post that he did fabricate his job experience and college education, adding that "my sins are embellishing my resume." He also responded to reports that he lied about being Jewish, saying he had claimed he was "Jew-ish."

Former aide accused Santos of sexual harassment

In February 2023, a former aide filed a complaint to the House Ethics Committee accusing him of sexual harassment.

The aide claimed Santos inappropriately touched him in the New York lawmaker's private office. Santos denied the allegation from the aide, who is the editor-in-chief of the Ohio news outlet the Scioto Valley Guardian.

"It's comical," Santos told CNN at the time. "Of course, I deny that claim."

Contributing: Bart Jansen , Ken Tran , Rachel Looker

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: What is George Santos accused of? Looking back at allegations after guilty plea