George Santos agrees to confess and pay damages in Brazil case where he is accused of spending money with stolen checkbook
Representative George Santos has reportedly agreed to confess and pay damages in a fraud case in Brazil in which the congressman is accused of defrauding a Rio de Janeiro employee out of $1,300 spent on clothing and shoes.
Prosecutors accepted Santos’ plea deal last week after they asked Santos’ attorneys to assure them they have the ability to contact the victim and pay him before the deal is finalized, according to CNN.
The criminal case had been on hold until recently for nearly 10 years after Rio de Janeiro authorities failed to locate Santos.
The embattled New York Republican is accused of using a stolen checkbook to spend money under an assumed name. It reportedly occurred in a clothing store in the Brazilian city of Niterói.
After the 2008 incident, Santos reportedly opened up on a Brazilian social media website the following year, writing: “I know I screwed up, but I want to pay.”
But fast forward to 2022, the new member of Congress told the New York Post that he has never committed any crime.
“I am not a criminal here, neither here nor in Brazil nor in any jurisdiction in the world,” Santos said.
Santos is accused of using a stolen checkbook to spend money under a false name. It reportedly occurred in a clothing store in the Brazilian city of Niterói.
Earlier this month, Santos was alleged to have masterminded an ATM fraud involving a former roommate who has since written to the FBI about the scam.
The latest scandal relates to an identity theft scam that took place in Washington state in 2017.
Gustavo Ribeiro Trelha, who was convicted of credit card fraud in the case, wrote a letter sent to the FBI on Wednesday calling Santos, alias Anthony Devolder, the mastermind behind the crime. He saw devices installed in ATMs that copied customer card data, allowing Trelha, and allegedly Santos, to empty those accounts.
Santos in 2017 spoke to a judge in King County in support of Trelha, whom he referred to as a “family friend.” That’s when the New York Republican told the judge his infamous lie about working for Goldman Sachs, according to political. He also said that he was ‘an aspiring politician’.
Gustavo Ribeiro Trelha (pictured right), who was convicted of credit card fraud in the case, wrote a letter that was sent to the FBI on Wednesday calling Santos (pictured left), aka Anthony Devolder , the person in charge of the crime.