By PHILIP MARCELO
NEW YORK (AP) — Disgraced former U.S. Rep. George Santos “remains unrepentant” as he faces years in federal prison for fraud and identity theft, federal prosecutors say, citing a tirade of his social media posts in recent days.
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Prosecutors, in a legal filing Thursday, bolstered their arguments for a stiff sentence, saying the 36-year-old New York Republican has disparaged the U.S. Department of Justice as a “cabal of pedophiles” and cast himself as a victim of prosecutorial overreach in multiple posts on the social platform X.
“This conduct is antithetical to the ‘genuine remorse’ claimed by Santos’s attorneys,” prosecutors wrote. “His actions speak louder than any words, and they cry out for a significant carceral sentence in this case.”
Lawyers for Santos didn’t immediately respond to an email seeking comment.
The social media blitz started April 4 after prosecutors and Santos’ lawyers submitted their sentencing memos to a judge for consideration during his April 25 sentencing in Long Island federal court.
“No matter how hard the DOJ comes for me, they are mad because they will NEVER break my spirit,” Santos wrote in one post.
In another exchange on X, he denied using campaign contributions to buy luxury goods from Hermès, which prosecutors note is conduct specifically mentioned in court documents.
“Even at this late stage, he simply refuses to fully own up to his actions,” they wrote in their Thursday filing, which included screenshots of the social media posts.
Prosecutors are seeking a seven year prison sentence for Santos, saying his “unparalleled crimes” had “made a mockery” of the country’s election system.
They’ve also suggested he has a “high likelihood of reoffending” given he has not forfeited any of his ill-gotten gains or repaid any of the victims.
Santos’ lawyers, meanwhile, have sought a two-year prison term, which is the mandatory minimum sentence for aggravated identity theft.
The lawyers argue that Santos has no prior criminal record and that such a sentence is in line with those handed to former U.S. Rep. Jesse Jackson Jr. and other political figures who faced similar financial crimes.
Santos admitted in August that he duped voters, deceived donors and stole the identities of nearly a dozen people, including his own family members, to make donations to his congressional campaign.
As part of the plea deal, he agreed to pay nearly $375,000 in restitution and $205,000 in forfeiture.
Santos was elected in 2022 to represent parts of Queens and Long Island, but served barely a year in office before he was ousted by his House colleagues — the sixth ever in the chamber’s history.
The once-rising Republican’s political demise came after it was revealed that he had fabricated much of his life story, leading to questions about how the political unknown had funded his winning campaign.
Santos cast himself as a wealthy businessman who worked at prestigious Wall Street firms and held a valuable real estate portfolio when in reality he was struggling financially and even faced eviction.
Follow Philip Marcelo at twitter.com/philmarcelo.
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