As of Dec. 1, New York Representative George Santos became the sixth person ever expelled from Congress, following an accusation from the House Ethics Committee reporting that he defrauded donors to enrich his campaign. This report followed federal charges, including wire fraud, money laundering, theft of public funds and lying to Congress. However, Santos pleaded not guilty to these charges. The House voted 311-114, more than two-thirds majority, to immediately remove Santos. 

A Dec. 1 story in the Intelligencer points out that the New York Times first brought attention to the mysterious life of Santos in Dec. 2022. The Intelligencer provides a comprehensive list of allegations against the former congressman, summarized below: 

• Federal prosecutors accused Santos of defrauding political supporters while he was running for Congress in 2022. Santos allegedly laundered the money to use it for his personal benefit. The Intelligencer states that, “for his personal benefit, including to make cash withdrawals, personal purchases of luxury designer clothing, credit card payments, a car payment, payments on personal debts.”
• Santos allegedly lied in order to gain more than $24,000 in unemployment benefits. He illegally applied for benefits in June of 2020 however he was employed as a regional director of an investment firm.
• Santos was accused of identity fraud and credit card theft on Oct. 10, accusing him of making unauthorized donations using his campaign donor’s credit card information and stealing family members’ identities.
• He allegedly lied to Congress. The House Committee of Ethics reports, “His campaign filings and House FD Statements are replete with so many errors and omissions that they cannot be reasonably relied upon. Those ‘errors’ go far beyond an embellished resume and include numerous misrepresentations to the government and the public about his and his campaign’s financial activities.”
• The Federal Election Commission (FEC) states that Santos claimed to make personal loans to his campaign committee during the 2020 and 2022 election. These loans totaled more than $800,000 and he later reimbursed himself for a large portion. Meanwhile, the House Ethics Committee reported that there is “substantial evidence” that his loans were not made or properly recorded with the FEC.
• He lied about where he went to school and college. He claimed to have attended the Horace Mann School in the Bronx but left his senior year, stating that his parents fell on hard times. However, a spokesperson for the school stated that there is no record of Santos attending the school. He also claimed to have graduated from Baruch College in 2010 (even though he supposedly graduated high school in 2008). A Baruch representative stated that there was no record of Santos in the 2010 class. He eventually told the New York Post that he didn’t graduate from higher education.
• Santos’ campaign claimed that he was employed at Goldman Sachs and Citigroup however these companies have stated that they have no record of his employment. Santos claimed to have worked in Citi’s real estate wing in the 2010s; however, the bank sold this operation when Santos would’ve been in high school. The Times gained a copy of Santos’ resume after he was sworn into Congress.