Republican Representative From New York, Rep. George Santos, Entered a Plea of Innocence
Date : 28th October, 2023
THE SOIL – In response to the most current round of federal indictments, Republican representative from New York, Rep. George Santos, entered a plea of innocence on Friday. These accusations, which are contained in an updated indictment, claim that he used the identities of his campaign supporters without authorization, causing significant unauthorised charges to accumulate on their credit cards.
Santos appeared before the Central Islip, New York, U.S. District Court. He declined to speak with reporters during this period, according to CBS News New York.
September 9 is his court date, according to the statement from the U.S. attorney’s office. This takes place following the Republican primary but 57 days before the general election in November. Several candidates have already expressed interest in unseating Santos; one of them is former Democratic Representative Tom Suozzi. In 2022, Suozzi left his position to run an unsuccessful campaign for governor.
In response to the amended allegations, Santos formally proclaimed his innocence and declined to refute the prosecution’s worries about his lawyer Joe Murray’s prior contacts with his former campaign manager, Nancy Marks, and an unidentified person. The date of his next hearing is December 12.
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Prosecution Stated That They Had Given Santos the Names of Other People He was Not Allowed to Speak to
It was also expected that the federal prosecution team will ask for modifications or prolongations to Santos’ pretrial release terms. In a filing with the court, the prosecution stated that they had given Santos the names of other people he was not allowed to speak to. That being said, since some of these people were actually Santos’ family members, his attorneys requested authorization to make some of these contacts.
Santos’s attorney confirmed, in line with the district attorney’s declaration, that “he shall remain barred from engaging in discussions with these persons regarding this lawsuit, the ongoing accusations lodged against him, the circumstances surrounding the pending allegations, and any forthcoming judicial proceedings, trial, or testimony connected to this case.”
Santos Admitted Guilt to a Plot to Defraud US Government
In an amended indictment made public early this month, more charges were disclosed. This came after the former campaign treasurer for Santos admitted guilt to a plot to defraud the US government. Santos’s campaign financial reports were inflated with bogus loans and contributions, the treasurer said.
According to the most recent charge, Santos “continuously, without proper consent,” used campaign contributors’ credit cards without authorization for his own benefit as well as for campaign-related purposes.
According to the complaint, Santos repeatedly used a contributor’s credit card without getting their permission, allegedly racking up $15,800 in expenses for his campaign and related political organisations. Prosecutors assert that Santos sought to use the same contributor’s information to incur $44,800 in unauthorised expenses over the course of the following months. Additionally, according to the indictment, a portion of the proceeds were transferred into Santos’ personal bank account.
Santos is Being Accused of 23 Cimes in Total
In addition, the prosecution said that Santos and his former campaign treasurer, Nancy Marks, had colluded to falsify his campaign’s financial records in order to raise money and strengthen his candidature. The two are also charged with giving false information about an alleged $500,000 loan that Santos gave to his campaign.
In the first indictment, Santos was accused of wire fraud, money laundering, misappropriation of public funds, and giving the House of Representatives materially false information. Santos is being accused of 23 crimes in total.
Santos responded to the accusations in the initial indictment by entering a plea of innocence in May. He has continuously denied any accusations of improper behaviour and turned down requests to resign from his role in Congress.