Rep. George Santos isn’t ready to consider a plea deal with federal prosecutors on charges of making false statements, money laundering, fraud and theft, the embattled New York Republican said Thursday.
Santos, who is under a 13-count federal indictment and faces up to 20 years in prison if convicted, left the door open, however, to possibly striking a deal with the Justice Department at some point in the future.
“Right now I’m not,” the 35-year-old Long Island lawmaker responded when asked by NewsNation’s Dan Abrams if he would consider a guilty plea.
“I’m not making any assertions right now. Like I said earlier, I’m like, it’s — right now, the answer is no. But you just never know. Life is – you don’t know what life is going to come at you, you know?” he added.
Santos became embroiled in controversy soon after his 2022 midterm election victory in New York’s 3rd Congressional District race when he admitted to lying about large swaths of his backstory — including his education, work experience and family history.
He was hit with federal charges in May, with prosecutors alleging he embezzled $50,000 in campaign money to buy designer clothing and pay personal expenses.
Santos pleaded not guilty and is free on a $500,000 bond that was posted by his father and aunt.
“Look, I think anybody would be scared to go to prison, right?” Santos said during his interview with Abrams.
“But the reality is, is right now, I’m confident I won’t,” the truth-challenged pol added.
Santos is adamant that he will run for re-election in 2024 and confident he can mount a successful campaign despite the charges.
“Look, remember Chris Collins, upstate New York? He was re-elected under indictment. We’ve had members of Congress on both sides of the aisle get re-elected under indictment because you’re fighting, you’re innocent until proven guilty,” he said.
