New York Republican Congressman Anthony D’Esposito is in hot water after explosive allegations that he had an affair with a woman and then put her on his taxpayer-funded payroll.
According to the New York Times, the 42-year-old first-term lawmaker was in a relationship with Devin Faas. The newspaper attributed the news of the relationship to four people familiar with her.
Last April, Faas began receiving $2,000 a month for a part-time job at his district office.
The job came shortly after D’Esposito also hired the daughter of his longtime fiancée to work as a special assistant in that same district office shortly after he took office, the New York Times also reported. Her salary eventually increased to $3,800 a month.
The report suggests that the decision to put both his mistress and his fiancée’s daughter on the taxpayer-funded payroll could violate House ethics rules.
This comes as the congressman faces a looming election in a district that voted for Biden in 2020 and could help decide the majority in the House.
New York Republican Congressman Anthony D’Esposito is facing explosive allegations that he had an affair with a woman and then put her on his taxpayer-funded payroll. The New York Times reports that he also put his longtime fiancée’s daughter on the payroll of the same district office.
Payments to both women stopped abruptly a few months later, in the summer of 2023, the New York Times reports.
According to the four people familiar with the relationship, that was the time D’Esposito’s fiancée found out about the affair with Faas and briefly broke up with him.
The employment of the two women resulted in the payment of $29,000 in taxpayer money, which could lead to disciplinary action in the House, experts told The Times.
DailyMail.com reached out to the congressman’s office by phone and email for comment but did not immediately receive a response.
A spokesman for the congressman did not deny the matter to the New York Times and declined to comment on the women’s employment.
“We don’t comment on personnel matters,” Matt Capp said.
He said the congressman “remains focused on fighting for real issues that affect Long Islanders, like securing our borders and ending the affordability crisis.”
Rep. D’Esposito (center) in January 2023, shortly after taking office. A spokesperson for his office did not deny the matter, but would not comment on the employment of the two women, saying they “do not comment on personnel matters.”
When The New York Times contacted Faas, she replied “no, thank you” and hung up the phone.
The New York Times confirmed the affair with three people, including Faas’ ex-husband, Derek Ciaschi, who said the affair ended their marriage.
He also reviewed text messages from 2022 that appeared to show D’Esposito and Faas exchanging love notes and arranging meetings while he was running for Congress.
“I love you until Monday,” Faas wrote in a text message. D’Esposito replied: “So much.”
D’Esposito is a first-term legislator who has represented New York’s 4th Congressional District on Long Island since early 2023. Prior to being elected to Congress, he was a member of the Hempstead Town Hall.
She reportedly began the relationship with Faas, a 38-year-old married secretary from the town of Hempstead, in 2021. According to her ex-husband, the affair ended the marriage and their divorce came in the final months of the 2022 campaign.
The congressman’s longtime fiancée, Cynthia Lark, whom he had been with since about 2010, told the New York Times that the affair was a ““It was a very painful time in my life,” but she said their relationship was “a family matter.”
Biden won the Long Island district by fourteen points in 2020 before D’Esposito won it in 2022 by less than four points.
He will face a rematch with Democrat Laura Gillen in November.