NEW YORK — Prosecutors are searching for greater than seven years in jail for disgraced former U.S. Rep. George Santos after he pleaded in charge to federal fraud and identification robbery fees.
The U.S. Lawyer for the Japanese District of New York argued in a court docket submitting Friday {that a} important sentence was once warranted for the reason that New York Republican’s “unheard of crimes” had “made a mockery” of the rustic’s election machine.
“From his advent of an entirely fictitious biography to his callous robbery of cash from aged and impaired donors, Santos’s unrestrained greed and voracious urge for food for popularity enabled him to take advantage of the very machine through which we make a selection our representatives,” the administrative center wrote.
Prosecutors additionally argued that Santos have been “unrepentant and defiant” for years, pushing aside the prosecution as a “witch hunt” and refusing to renounce from Congress as his internet of lies was once debunked.
They stated his claims of regret after pleading in charge “ring hole” and recommended he has a “excessive probability of reoffending” given he has now not forfeited any of his ill-gotten features or repaid any of his sufferers.
Santos’ legal professionals, in an e mail to The Related Press, brushed aside the seven-year proposal as “absurd and unfounded,” announcing apparently “designed to overcome up on a person that already took complete duty for his movements.”
In their very own sentencing memo Friday, they rejected the perception that Santos will fall again into felony habits, noting he has no prior felony file and in addition supplies “the most important” beef up to his sister and her younger daughter.
They argued for a two-year jail time period, which is the required minimal sentence for annoyed identification robbery.
The legal professionals deal with the sort of sentence is consistent with the ones passed to former U.S. Rep. Jesse Jackson Jr. and different political figures going through an identical monetary crimes.
In addition they touted Santos’ cooperation in a separate federal investigation right into a Texas guy who attempted to dupe Santos out of just about $1 million by way of posing as a political fixer providing to spoil proof in his circumstances.
“This sentence, coupled with the numerous collateral penalties Mr. Santos has already suffered—together with the lack of his congressional seat and public humiliation — would ship a transparent message that such habits may not be tolerated,” the legal professionals wrote.
A federal pass judgement on on Lengthy Island is scheduled to come to a decision Santos’ sentence all the way through a court docket listening to April 25.
The once-rising Republican, who represented portions of Queens and Lengthy Island, served slightly a 12 months in administrative center sooner than he was once ousted by way of his Space colleagues in 2023, simply the 6th congressperson ever expelled within the chamber’s historical past.
Santos’ political dying got here after it was once printed that he had fabricated a lot of his existence tale, resulting in questions on how the political unknown had funded his successful marketing campaign.
The now-36-year-old forged himself as a rich businessman who had graduated from best schools, labored at prestigious Wall Side road companies and held a precious actual property portfolio. In reality, he was once suffering financially and confronted eviction.
Santos admitted in August that he duped citizens, deceived donors and stole the identities of just about a dozen other folks, together with his personal members of the family, to make donations to his congressional marketing campaign.
He was once to begin with because of be sentenced in February, however a pass judgement on granted him a three-month reprieve to get a hold of greater than part one million bucks in court docket fines.
As a part of his plea deal, Santos agreed to pay just about $375,000 in restitution and $205,000 in forfeiture.
Santos’ legal professionals stated on the time that he had little greater than $1,000 in liquid property and wanted extra time to construct his newly introduced podcast “Pants on Hearth” in an effort to start paying off the debt.
Prosecutors deal with Santos profited handsomely from his infamy, arguing he has earned greater than $800,000 from appearances at the video-sharing web page Cameo and from a brand new documentary since his expulsion from Congress.
Two of Santos’ marketing campaign staffers have additionally pleaded in charge to federal fees in connection to the marketing campaign financing scheme.
Sam Miele, his former marketing campaign fundraiser, was once sentenced in March to at least one 12 months and someday in federal jail. He admitted to impersonating a high-ranking congressional aide and charging donors’ bank cards with out authorization whilst elevating marketing campaign money for Santos.
Nancy Marks, Santos’ former marketing campaign treasurer, admitted to submitting bogus marketing campaign finance experiences full of pretend donors and a pretend $500,000 non-public mortgage from Santos himself.
The gildings helped the marketing campaign hit fundraising thresholds had to qualify for monetary backing from the nationwide Republican Birthday party. Marks is because of be sentenced in Might.
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Practice Philip Marcelo at twitter.com/philmarcelo.
