Following his admission that he had lied about his education and employment experience, a Republican congressman-elect in New York is the subject of an investigation into his actions.
George Santos’s curriculum vitae has “many fabrications and discrepancies,” according to the Republican district attorney for Nassau County, who has stated that she will investigate the matter.
A piece that was published by the New York Times a week ago was the first to make allegations regarding inconsistencies in his background story.
The inauguration of Mr. Santos is set to take place on January 3rd.
In an investigation that was published by the newspaper earlier this month, it was claimed that Mr. Santos, who had been elected to Congress in the midterm elections in November, had made various false statements on his resume.
Among these were the facts that he had received a degree from Baruch College in New York and had held positions at prominent Wall Street corporations such as Goldman Sachs and Citigroup.
Mr. Santos revealed earlier this week that he had never worked for either company directly and that he had lied on his CV about graduating from college, claiming that he was “embarrassed” because he had not. Mr. Santos also stated that he had lied on his CV about working for either company directly.
In response to allegations that he had exaggerated the extent of his Jewish heritage, he stated, in an interview with the New York Post that was published on Monday, that he was a Catholic and had never claimed to be Jewish; however, when “I learned my maternal family had a Jewish background, I said I was “Jew-ish,” “I said I was Jewish-ish.”
Mr. Santos has stated that he is “not a criminal,” and he has also stated that the incident will not prevent him from completing the remaining two years of his time in the House of Representatives.
Mr. Santos was quoted as saying to the Post, “My sins here are inflating my resume.” “I truly apologize.”
After it came to light that the congressman-elect had tweeted what appeared to be conflicting accounts about the passing of his mother, additional scrutiny was brought upon him.
In a tweet that was published in July 2021, Mr. Santos stated, “9/11 took the life of my mother.”
In a subsequent post that was published many months later, he referred to his mother when he wrote, “December 23rd this year marks 5 years since I lost my dearest friend and mentor.”
According to the website for Mr. Santos’s campaign, his mother was at work on September 11, 2001, at her office in the South Tower of the old World Trade Center. She survived the attack, but she succumbed to cancer some years later.
On Wednesday, Anne Donnelly, the District Attorney for Nassau County, New York, stated that residents of Mr. Santos’ congressional district in New York “need an honest and accountable representative in Congress.”
No one “is above the law, and if a crime was committed in this county, we will prosecute it,” which is a common expression in the United States.
According to a source who spoke to the US partner of the BBC, CBS News, as well as other US media outlets, federal prosecutors of the US attorney’s office in the Eastern District of New York have also begun a separate federal investigation.
CBS stated that they are investigating his financial declarations as well as his finances at this time. According to ABC News, there had not yet been a “formal investigation” conducted.
In addition to problems with his biography, Mr. Santos has been the subject of inquiries over his personal fortune and the means by which he was able to lend his campaign $700,00 (£575,000).
Several news organizations in the United States have stated that New York Attorney General Letitia James is “looking into” some of the concerns that have been voiced against Mr. Santos.
Mr. Santos won the election to serve as the representative for a district that includes portions of Nassau County on Long Island as well as Queens.
A request for a comment on the investigations was delivered to him, but he did not react right away.
Since the scandal began, he has been subjected to a rising number of calls to resign, notably from lawmakers affiliated with the Republican Party; nonetheless, he has stated on multiple occasions that he intends to continue serving the remainder of his term. An American legislator is being investigated for allegedly lying on his resume.