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(Bloomberg) -- Former US Representative George Santos, a onetime rising Republican star who falsely claimed to have worked for Goldman Sachs Group Inc. before running for Congress, was ordered to serve seven years and three months in prison for stealing campaign funds.
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Santos, 36, was sentenced Friday in Central Islip, New York, by US District Judge Joanna Seybert, who called his crimes “flagrant thievery.” The 87-month prison term matched a recommendation by federal prosecutors. A lawyer for Santos asked for two years. The judge told Santos to surrender to federal custody by July 25.
The former lawmaker, who wiped away tears as he was sentenced, was in Congress for less than a year. He was expelled after a US House ethics probe substantiated allegations of theft and deceit. Prosecutors initially charged Santos with 23 counts of wire fraud, money laundering and theft of public funds. He pleaded guilty in August to two counts of wire fraud and identity theft just weeks before his trial.
As part of his plea agreement, Santos confessed to taking part in a wide range of conduct, including filing bogus reports with the Federal Election Commission, embezzling campaign funds, charging credit cards without authorization and fraudulently obtaining unemployment benefits.
Prosecutor Ryan Harris said the government investigation concluded Santos had engaged in five separate frauds at the same time, and that some of the victims he stole money from were handicapped or elderly.
‘Fraudster’
“He rose to one of the highest offices in the land on a wave of lies,” Harris told the judge. “His campaign for Congress didn’t turn him into a fraudster. It simply revealed him for what he already was.”
The prosecutor also said Santos had remained unrepentant and had refused to take responsibility for his crimes in comments he’d posted on social media.
“Where is your remorse?” Seybert told the former lawmaker at Friday’s hearing. “Mr Santos, words have consequences. You got elected by your words, which were lies. Truth be damned.”
Santos’ lawyers sought a mandatory minimum term of 24 months, arguing that his crimes were non-violent. They also asked that he be placed in a federal prison in the northeast US, where he could get mental health treatment.