Federal prosecutors are using ex-Long Island Rep. George Santos’ recent social media posts against the U.S. Justice Department to bolster their argument that he should be imprisoned for more than 7 years when he is sentenced next week for running a series of scams when he ran for Congress.
“This conduct is antithetical to the ‘genuine remorse’ claimed by Santos’s attorneys in their sentencing memorandum,” prosecutors wrote in a letter to U.S. District Judge Joanna Seybert in Central Islip. “His actions speak louder than any words, and they cry out for a significant carceral sentence in this case.”
Santos’ attorneys did not immediately respond to a message seeking comment Thursday.
Santos pleaded guilty to committing wire fraud and aggravated identity theft in August 2024 in connection with a series of schemes he committed as he ran for Congress.
WHAT NEWSDAY FOUND
- Federal prosecutors are using ex-Long Island Rep. George Santos’ recent social media posts against the U.S. Justice Department to bolster their argument that he should be imprisoned for more than 7 years when he is sentenced next week for running a series of scams when he ran for Congress.
- Santos pleaded guilty to committing wire fraud and aggravated identity theft in August 2024 in connection with a series of schemes he committed as he ran for Congress.
- U.S. District Judge Joanna Seybert is scheduled to sentence Santos in Central Islip on April 25.
He now hosts a podcast.
Santos has asked for a 24-month prison term while prosecutors have recommended that he serve 87 months.
“No matter how hard the DOJ comes for me,” Santos wrote on April 4 on X, formerly known as Twitter. “They are mad they will NEVER break my spirit.”
In another post included in the DOJ’s letter to the judge, an X user asked Santos if it’s true that he used campaign funds to buy items at the luxury retailer Hermès.
“No! That’s a false statement that has been passed on as truth,” Santos wrote.
“As the Court knows, Santos did use campaign contributions made to Redstone Strategies LLC to make luxury purchases at, among other stores, Hermès,” prosecutors wrote. “Even at this late stage, he simply refuses to fully own up to his actions.”
The next day, in two separate posts cited by prosecutors, Santos said DOJ “gets to step on my neck” and in a longer missive said: “I refuse to let them break me or my spirit and that makes them big MAD … they have used elaborate language to drag me and hinder my ability to earn income.”
Santos added that he was pursued for prosecution while sex traffickers and drug lords “walk freely” and get “slaps in the wrist.”
Prosecutors called those claims “demonstrably false.”
Prosecutors said at this stage they are not seeking to argue against Santos receiving credit for his guilty plea and allocution in the judge’s sentencing determination, but would revisit the issue if Santos’ online conduct persists.
“Put plainly, Santos is not genuinely remorseful, despite accepting responsibility as part of his allocution. If he were, his actions would be different. At a minimum, one would expect Santos to approach sentencing with a modicum of restraint so as not to undermine the attorneys who have advocated for leniency on his behalf. Instead, however, Santos has reverted to form and approaches sentencing with belligerence and an insatiable appetite for ‘likes,’ blaming his situation on everyone except himself,” prosecutors said.
Santos inflated his campaign’s financing levels in order to qualify for federal matching funds, stole money from his campaign contributors by fraudulently charging their credit cards, received more than $24,000 in unemployment benefits from New York State while he had a job and made several false statements on his congressional financial disclosure forms, prosecutors have said.
Santos was expelled from Congress in a historic move after representing parts of Nassau and Queens for about 11 months. He came into Congress under a cloud after The New York Times unmasked him as a serial liar.
In asking for the 87-month imprisonment for Santos, prosecutors said a “substantial deterrent” is required to prevent him from deceiving and defrauding people in the future.
“Santos is a pathological liar and fraudster,” prosecutors said in their sentencing memo to Seybert. “For years, Santos manufactured and promoted a fictionalized biography, one that depicted himself as a highly educated, independently wealthy businessman, all premised on a heap of lies.”
Santos’ attorneys, meanwhile, asked Seybert to sentence Santos to 24 months in prison, saying the former lawmaker has expressed genuine remorse for his actions.
“A sentence of 24 months, followed by a term of probation, would serve several purposes,” Santos’ lawyers wrote. “It would reflect the seriousness of Mr. Santos’ offenses while acknowledging his acceptance of responsibility and the significant collateral consequences he has already suffered.”
Seybert is scheduled to sentence Santos in Central Islip on April 25.
Nicole Fuller is Newsday’s senior criminal justice reporter. She began working at Newsday in 2012 and previously covered local government.
