A federal judge sentenced former U.S. Rep. George Santos, R-N.Y., to more than 7 years in prison on felony fraud charges.
The fabulist cried during the proceeding, but that didn’t sway U.S. District Judge Joanna Seybert, who ordered Santos to spend 87 months in federal lockup and pay $374,000 in restitution.
Santos pleaded guilty to the charges in August 2024. He was expelled from the House in December 2023.
Santos pleaded guilty to wire fraud and aggravated identity theft during his 2022 campaign. The guilty plea allowed him to avoid trial on 23 counts of fraud, including money laundering, theft of public funds, making false statements to the Federal Election Commission and identity theft.
At the time of the guilty plea, Santos, of Long Island, said he regretted his conduct.
“I betrayed the trust of my constituents and supporters,” he said at the time.
After he was indicted in October 2023, 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.
