Investigating the Corrupt Communication of Congressman-Elect George Santos on Capitol Hill: CNN’s Manu Raju and the New York Rep.-elect Anthony D’Esposito

CNN’s Manu Raju asked Santos if he knew about this reporting on Capitol Hill. CNN has reached out to attorneys for Santos in Brazil and the United States.

“Congressman-Elect George Santos has broken the public trust by making serious misstatements regarding his background, experience and education, among other issues,” said Joseph G. Cairo, chair of the Nassau County Republican Committee, which is within the 3rd Congressional District.

She said that residents in New York’s 3rd Congressional District, who cover part of Nassau County, must have an honest and accountable representative. If a crime is committed in the county, we will prosecute it, and no one is above the law.

He has a life story that has come under question, including his claim that his grandparents fled persecution in the former Yugoslavia and settled in Belgium.

“As a Navy man who campaigned on restoring accountability and integrity to our government, I believe a full investigation by the House Ethics Committee and, if necessary, law enforcement, is required,” GOP Rep.-elect Nick LaLota said in a statement.

Another incoming GOP lawmaker from New York, Rep.-elect Anthony D’Esposito, condemned Santos’ false statements and called on him to “pursue a path of honesty,” although he stopped short of calling for an investigation.

The Republican who is set to be the next congressman from New York called on his fellow Republican to apologize and cooperate with any investigations. Lawler added that by downplaying action’s, Santos is “only making things worse.”

Republicans in the House called for him to resign, but he brushed it off. He has played coy when asked if he plans to seek re-election, though filed required paperwork to keep the option open.

He is going to be sworn in next Tuesday when the house is in session. If he assumes office, he could face investigations by the House Committee on Ethics and the Justice Department.

An apology to Los Angeles Times and the Republican Jewish Coalition: George Santos will not be a Member of Congress for a Six-Year Campaign

He admitted to lying about working for Citigroup and Goldman Sachs and said he did not graduate from any college or university despite claiming he obtained degrees from Baruch College and New York University. CNN’s KFile reviewed records of Jewish refugees, as well as interviews with multiple genealogy experts, and found that the claims that his grandparents survived the Holocaust are false. Since then, he has described himself as an American Jew and Latino Jew, but now he says he is a Catholic and just jokingly refers to himself as Jew-ish. The Republican Jewish Coalition barred him from attending its events because he misrepresented his heritage.

A spokesperson for the Nassau County DA’s office, Brendan Brosh, said Wednesday: “We are looking into the matter.” The scope of the investigation was not immediately clear.

The New York Times questioned a narrative that was presented to voters during the campaign for the north shore suburbs of Long Island and a part of Queens.

In an interview with the New York Post last week, Santos denied that he had been charged with any crime in Brazil, saying: “I am not a criminal here – not here or in Brazil or any jurisdiction in the world. Absolutely not. That did not happen.

Santos has apologized for some of the lies but has attempted to downplay the scope of the fabrications, arguing last week he only put “a little bit of fluff” in his resume.

He lied about working for Goldman and Citigroup, and earned a degree in finance and economics from New York’s Baruch College.

He backpedaled, saying he never intended to claim Jewish heritage, which was good news for his appeal among the Jewish voters in his district.

“He deceived us and misrepresented his heritage. In public comments and to us personally he previously claimed to be Jewish,” the coalition said. He won’t be welcomed in the future at any future event.

His Democratic opponent, Robert Zimmerman, also tried to raise Santos’ misrepresentations during his losing campaign, but it didn’t gain much traction.

I will not be a member of Congress anymore, but George Santos will take the seat I held for six years. He will take an oath to “bear true faith” to the Constitution and take this obligation without any “purpose of evasion.” I’ve lost track of how many evasions and lies Mr. Santos has told about himself, his finances and his history and relationship with our stretch of Long Island and northeastern Queens. When he is seated, it will make me feel less connected to my own country and my people. It saddens me that after 30 years of public service rooted in hard work and service to the people of this area, I’m being succeeded by a con man.

Anomalous Biography and a Misleading Investigation of a Republican Sen.-Elect George Santos in the 118th Congress

I still have my sense of optimism. I believe that as slow and frustrating as it sometimes is, our democracy, our free press and the rule of law work. They have to do that.

I also know the voters of the Third District pretty well; they believe in the rule of law, in playing by the rules. They like to have a good BS detector because they like authenticity in their leaders. The fact is that Mr. Santos’s behavior went beyond BS: He fabricated the basics of his biography to an extent that most voters wouldn’t have thought possible. It would be too great of a shame. I am certain that if the Third District’s voters have an opportunity to weigh in on his political future again, he will be gone.

Rep.-elect George Santos of New York is scheduled to be sworn in to Congress on Tuesday as he faces mounting scrutiny and condemnation over lies about his biography and amid an investigation by federal prosecutors into his finances.

All incoming members of the 118th Congress are scheduled to be sworn in following the vote for House speaker at the US Capitol, which is set to begin after noon ET on Tuesday.

“Campaign expenditures for staff members including travel, lodging, and meals are normal expenses of any competent campaign. Joe Murray, a lawyer for Santos, said in a statement to CNN on Saturday that the idea that the campaign engaged in any illegal spending of campaign funds is irresponsible.

One veteran Republican lawmaker, Rep. Kevin Brady of Texas, said Sunday on Fox News that Santos is “certainly going to have to consider resigning,” in the wake of the revelations, which were first reported by The New York Times last month. At least two Democrats – Reps. Joaquin Castro of Texas and Ted Lieu of California – have called for Santos to be expelled from Congress if he does not resign. The ability of the House to expel any member with two-thirds approval is extremely rare and only five lawmakers have been expelled in US history.

In the summer of 2011, investigators asked the Civil Police to take swift judicial measures againstSantos. He was summoned to respond to the complaint by a judge. Neither Santos nor an attorney ever responded. Three months later, authorities tried to deliver a summons for Santos at the prior home of his mother but he was not able to be located and she no longer lived there.

Law enforcement officials in Brazil will reinstate fraud charges against Rep.-elect George Santos, the Rio de Janeiro prosecutor’s office tells CNN, as the New York Republican officially assumes his role in the US House Tuesday under a cloud of suspicion over his dubious resume.

Brazilian authorities, having now verified Santos’ location, will make a formal request to the US Justice Department to notify Santos of the charges, Maristela Pereira, a spokeswoman for the Rio de Janeiro prosecutor’s office, told CNN. The request will be filed once the office reopens on Friday.

Santos’ claims that his grandparents fled the Holocaust as Ukrainian Jewish refugees and that his mother died as a result of being present in the South Tower during 9/11 have also come under scrutiny, CNN’s KFile found.

Detecting Defrauding George Santos: A New York City Correspondence with the Nassau County District Attorney’s Office

The Nassau County District Attorney said that no one was above the law and that they would prosecute any crime committed in the county.

The US attorney’s office in the Eastern District of New York refused to comment on what the fabrications they were exploring were.

Speaking with the police for the first time that month, Santos confessed he stole the checkbook from his mom’s purse and that he used “some sheets” to make purchases. The man admitted that he had forged his signature on two checks so he could purchase clothes and shoes for over a thousand dollars.

“He [Santos] acknowledged having been responsible for forging the signatures on the checks, also confirming that he had destroyed the remaining checks,” authorities wrote in an inquiry report about Santos.

In an interview with CNN on Wednesday, Bruno Simões said that Santos in 2008 paid for merchandise using a pair of stolen checks and forging the signature of the account owner.

The clerk had to pay the amount of the fraudulent purchase in installments to the store, he told police, although the store ended up waving some of the payments for the clerk, the store manager told the police in 2010. Soon after the sale, they were able to find the bank account’s owner and talk to him on the phone, the manager said. He said he had closed the account in 2006 after losing the checkbook.

He said at one point the clerk was able to find him using social media, and that he promised to pay them back, but never did. The pictures ofSantos were turned over to the police by the clerk. The talks between the clerk and Santos are shown in the documents obtained by CNN.

A man who claims to be a former shop clerk who was defrauded out of more than $1,300 by GeorgeSantos told voters that “don’t feel guilty, he does that really well.” He is a professional liar.

You will not be suspicious of someone who is well-spoken, educated, gentile. He sort of disarms people with those skills so that he can execute those frauds, ” Simões said.

The story of George Santos: How bad was it to be robbed by a Brazilian criminal? CNN’s Jose Marti’es

Simes was demanded to pay the shop’s damages of roughly four months’ salary, when it became clear they were fraudulent. Simões paid in installments before the shop owner waived the remaining amount.

“I was very frustrated. Simes told CNN that being deceived was a terrible feeling. It is worse to be mugged by someone with a gun who robs you than it is to be deceived, fooled, or acted in bad faith to steal from you.

“Unfortunately, I’ve been robbed in Brazil when I was younger, by someone armed… and I can guarantee you that I felt more frustrated in George’s case, who abused my good faith,” he continued.

In a 2009, social media exchange, Santos promised to repay Simes after he made a mistake. But Simões said Santos never made good on the pledge and, barring a court order, doesn’t have “high hopes” he’ll ever see the money again.

He confessed to his crime but he never looked me up to pay his debt. At the time I had to take the debt, which was quite high,” Simões told CNN.

“Some people make mistakes and regret them, and others seem to never regret and end up living their whole lives as a fraud. I believe that is the case with George,” Simões said. I don’t think the chances of me getting this money back are very high.

Source: https://www.cnn.com/2023/01/04/politics/george-santos-brazilian-clerk-fraud/index.html

How strange is it to see a criminal in Congress? The story of Simes, the New York Republican, who lied to investigators and the Ethics Committee

The New York Republican’s fabrications took center stage on Wednesday in the US Capitol as he was followed by reporters through the hallways and tunnels.

He told police that he used two checks and threw the rest in a manhole, Simes said. I believe he cheated other companies and people.

Simões said he thought it was important to share his story because “it looks like he hasn’t learned and is still investing in this career of fraud, faking information and lying.”

The man Simes went after for deceiving him almost 15 years before had been elected to Congress. But after a local reporter pointed him out, Simões searched Santos’ name online.

“Honestly, it was a mix of shock and a comical scene,” he said of the revelation that followed. It was strange to see the picture of him in a suit.

“I saw his photo and I remembered very clearly the photos I had seen of him when he was 19 years old. I was wondering if it was possible for a criminal to be elected as a congressman. To me that was unbelievable.”

In a news release, The Ethics Committee said that it voted to set up an investigative subcommittee with authority to look into a number of issues, including whether or not he engaged in illegal activity related to his congressional campaign.

How did the New York City Senator John F. Santos quit his job as a political figure? A response to an ethics complaint by Erice Siena

“You’re saying that the freedom of speech of my constituents is a distraction to my work?” Santos said. People are a distraction to the work I am doing.

The grassroots campaigns demanding his removal were not representative of the district, as Santos stated in a recent interview with Piers Morgan. But a poll released on Monday by Siena College found that 66% of New Yorkers wanted him out – including 58% of Republicans.

The good news for Santos is that he has succeeded in getting Democrats, Republicans and independents to agree on a political figure. The good news forSantos is that he is seen as a bad political figure by the majority of people.

The bookkeeping of the campaign has come under scrutiny, following the revelation that his former treasure had listed dozens of expenses just apenny beneath the legal threshold for keeping receipts.

The individual, Derek Myers, said in a House Ethics complaint that Santos “touched” his groin before allegedly inviting him to his home and said his husband was out of town, according to a copy of the document provided to CNN last month.

There is no record of the Congresswoman refusing to pay for the expenses after an extensive review of her communications by the OCE, according to the letter. There are a number of explicit, documented communications that show the congresswoman understood she had to pay for these expenses from her own funds. We are confident the Ethics Committee will dismiss this matter.”

Response to a Request for Non-prosecutorial Guarantees in the Context of the Resolution of a Case in the New York City Probate

The defense was asked for assurances that they can reach the victim before the deal is finalized.

A non-prosecutorial agreement is being requested in lieu of a trial by the attorney for the client, due to his argument that his client is now gainfully employed. The court should be able tocontactSantos by email or phone and allow him to take part in the proceedings via videoconference, according to the petition.