By Steve Neavling
After an 11-month congressional career built on falsehoods, George Santos pleaded guilty Monday to wire fraud and aggravated identity theft.
Santos, 36, is expected to be sentenced to at least six years in prison and ordered to pay more than $570,000 in restitution and forfeiture, the Associated Press reports.
With tears in his eyes, Santos said he was “flooded with deep regret” as he admitted to deceiving voters and donors and stealing the identities of 11 people, including his own family members, to finance his own campaign.
“I betrayed the trust of my constituents and supporters. I deeply regret my conduct,” the former New York representative said in a federal court in Long Island.
Santos was elected in 2022 after fabricating stories about his wealth and his background. He was expelled from Congress in December.
Outside of the courtroom, Santos told reporters his political aspirations drove him “to make decisions that were unethical.”
“Pleading guilty is a step I never imagined I’d take, but it is a necessary one because it is the right thing to do,” Santos said. “It’s not only a recognition of my misrepresentation to others, but more profoundly, it is my own recognition of the lies I told myself over these past years.”
