US Republican George Santos gets 7 years in prison for fraud |LAGOS EYE NEWS

George Santos, a disgraced former US representative, was sentenced to seven years and three months in prison Friday by US Federal District Court Judge Joanna Seybert.

Santos, a 36-year-old Republican from Long Island, New York, faced up to 22 years behind bars on charges of wire fraud and identity theft.

The former congressman wept as his sentence was handed down, pleading for mercy, claiming, “I offer my deepest apologies,” and adding, “I cannot rewrite the past, but I can control the road ahead.”

Judge Seybert, however, retorted, “Where is your remorse? Where do I see it?” as she sentenced him at the US Federal District Court in Central Islip, New York.

Santos had originally been scheduled to go on trial in September but opted to plead guilty to wire fraud and identity theft rather than face a raft of more than 20 further charges.

The fabulous Mr. Santos — catch me if you can
“He admitted to engaging in a brazen crime spree that took place over a period of years. He stole personal identities and financial information from campaign contributors, made unauthorized transfers of money to his campaign, and to himself personally,” argued lead prosecutor John Durham.

“He went so far as to seek out elderly people with cognitive impairment and dementia,” Durham added.

Prosecutors said Santos had yet to pay any of the $370,000 (€325,000) he was ordered to hand over as restitution in August 2024.

Despite having pleaded guilty, prosecutors said Santos had shown no signs of remorse as seen by statements he made on social media attempting to paint himself as the victim of prosecutorial overreach.

– DW