Rep. George Santos Pleads Not Guilty To A 13-Count Federal Indictment

Rep. George Santos, R-N.Y., pleaded not guilty at a Long Island courthouse on Wednesday to a 13-count federal indictment against him that was unsealed by the Department of Justice.

Santos, 34, who surrendered into custody on Wednesday morning, has been charged with seven counts of wire fraud, three counts of money laundering, one count of theft of public funds, and two counts of making materially false statements to the House of Representatives, according to the Justice Department.

He pleaded not guilty during an 11-minute hearing and was released on $500,000 bond. Santos must submit to pretrial services, have random monitoring at his home, surrender his passport, and any travel outside of New York state and Washington, D.C., must be pre-approved by the court.

He’s due in court again on June 30.

Speaking to reporters following his arraignment, Santos expressed confidence that he would be able to clear his name and characterized some of the charges against him as “inaccurate.”

He said he doesn’t plan to resign from Congress, and that he still plans to run for re-election next year, which he had announced last month, despite calls for him to resign and the ongoing investigations he has faced at the federal, state and local levels.

Santos added that he was facing what he called a “witch hunt.”

The first-term lawmaker, who represents New York’s 3rd Congressional District, is accused of engaging in three schemes in the indictment.

In the first alleged scheme, prosecutors said he defrauded prospective political supporters in September 2022 by enlisting a Queens-based political consultant — described in court documents as “Person #1” — to communicate with possible donors on Santos’ behalf.

“Santos allegedly directed Person #1 to falsely tell donors that, among other things, their money would be used to help elect Santos to the House, including by purchasing television advertisements,” the DOJ said.

Two unnamed contributors then each transferred $25,000 to a bank account that Santos controlled, prosecutors said. Santos allegedly used much of that money for personal expenses, including buying designer clothing, paying down debt and making a car payment.

In the second alleged scheme, Santos is accused of engaging in unemployment insurance fraud beginning in 2020 by applying for unemployment benefits that were made available to out-of-work Americans during the pandemic.

Santos applied for the money despite being employed as the regional director of a Florida-based investment firm, where he earned an annual salary of $120,000, according to the indictment.