Federal prosecutors have filed criminal charges against New York Rep. George Santos, multiple News outlets reported Tuesday.
The Republican lawmaker, whose astonishing pattern of lies and fabrications stunned even his own supporters, is expected to appear as soon as Wednesday at federal court in New York’s eastern district, where the charges have been filed under seal, according to CNN.
“The exact nature of the charges couldn’t immediately be learned but the FBI and the Justice Department public integrity prosecutors in New York and Washington have been examining allegations of false statements in Santos’ campaign finance filings and other claims,” the network reported.
The freshman congressman has been under investigation in multiple jurisdictions and by the House Ethics Committee since he was elected last year to represent a district that includes parts of Long Island and Queens.
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Santos has admitted to making an array of misleading claims that he sold to voters about his education and financial status, but denied the most serious allegations.
What followed, though, was often stranger than fiction. A New York Times report unveiled a seemingly endless string of new revelations ranging from allegations he stole a dog from an Amish dairy farmer, and falsely claiming that he played high-level college volleyball at a college he never attended.
During his victorious campaign last year, Santos ran according to the Republican midterm playbook, telling voters that Democrats were “trying to ban toilet paper” and hammering his opponent over crime and inflation. He also played up his support for former President Donald Trump.
The message resonated in the New York suburbs, where GOP candidates flipped four seats on their way to winning a narrow House majority.
House Speaker Kevin McCarthy told CNN he will look at the charges before determining if he thinks Santos should be removed from Congress.
