Former congressman George Santos expected to plead guilty to charges related to campaign fraud Monday
By Mark Morales, CNN
(CNN) — Former New York Rep. George Santos is expected to plead guilty Monday to federal charges relating to fraudulent activity during his 2022 midterm campaign, according to multiple sources familiar with the deal.
Santos, who was expelled from the House last year, previously pleaded not guilty to 23 federal charges, including allegations of fraud related to Covid-19 unemployment benefits, misusing campaign funds and lying about his personal finances on House disclosure reports.
CNN has reached out to Santos, his attorney and the US Eastern District of New York prosecutor’s office for comment.
The expected plea would come months after his campaign fundraiser, Sam Miele, pleaded guilty to a federal wire fraud charge as part of a plea deal in November. His former campaign treasurer, Nancy Marks, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to defraud the United States by committing one or more federal offenses in October.
Santos previously represented New York’s 3rd Congressional District on Long Island as a Republican. He is the sixth lawmaker ever to be expelled from the chamber and the first House member to be expelled without having been convicted or having supported the Confederacy.
While the New York lawmaker had survived previous attempts to oust him before he was kicked out of the House last year, momentum mounted after the House Ethics Committee released a long-awaited report that concluded that the congressman had “sought to fraudulently exploit every aspect of his House candidacy for his own personal financial profit.”
The resolution to expel him passed 311 to 114, with 105 Republicans voting with the overwhelming majority of Democrats in favor of his expulsion.
Santos briefly attempted a congressional comeback earlier this year, announcing in March that he would leave the Republican Party to run as an independent in New York’s 1st District.
He dropped his bid in April, saying at the time that didn’t want to split the ticket with incumbent GOP Rep. Nick LaLota and “be responsible for handing the house to Dems.”
This report has been updated with additional information.
CNN’s Piper Hudspeth Blackburn, Clare Foran and Haley Talbot contributed to this report.
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