Ex-Rep. George Santos says he no longer seeks presidential pardon

Fraudster and ex-Rep. George Santos, who was sentenced to 87 months in prison for aggravated identity theft and wire fraud, said he will no longer seek a presidential pardon for his crimes.

“Even though I initially considered the prospect of petitioning the president with a pardon application I have [ceased] that approach as I will not spend the last 61 days I have of life scrambling on how to get past a bunch of guard dogs,” Santos wrote in a post on X. “The so-called ‘friends’ I have that said they’d help legit should have just told me to go f– myself, because that’s what has essentially happened with their actions. I’ve accepted my fate and don’t want to talk about it anymore.”

After making the post, Santos deleted his personal X account @MrSantosNY.

Santos, who represented New York’s 3rd Congressional District on the North Shore of Nassau County and northeastern Queens, was elected in November 2022.

Before he was sworn in, newspapers reported that Santos lied about his professional background, educational history, religion, race and property ownership, among other things.

He was expelled in December 2023 after a House Ethics Committee investigation into allegations of his unethical and illegal activities that began shortly following his election.

Santos was indicted in May 2023 on 13 counts of wire fraud, money laundering, theft of public funds and making materially false statements to Congress.

In October 2023, he was handed an additional 10 conspiracy charges to commit offenses against the United States, wire fraud, lying to the Federal Election Commission, falsifying records, aggravated identity theft, and device fraud.

In August 2024, Santos pleaded guilty to two counts of wire fraud and identity theft. In exchange for his guilty plea, the 21 other charges from his indictment were dropped.

George Santos was sentenced to 87 months in prison for identify theft and wire fraud.Karen Rubin/news-photos-features.com

On April 25, he was sentenced to 87 months in prison for aggravated identity theft and wire fraud. The Justice Department sought this sentence, while his defense requested a sentence of just two years.

The seven-year punishment combines two consecutive sentences for the two counts he pleaded guilty to. He is also required to pay $373,000 in restitution to his victims.

Santos’ attorney, Joseph Murray, told Schneps Media LI  less than a week after Santos’ sentencing that they were seeking to apply for a presidential pardon.

“Because President Trump went through what he went through with his cases, he will identify right away the political aspects of this prosecution,” Murray previously told the Schneps Media LI.

Earlier this month, Santos pleaded on an episode of “Piers Morgan Uncensored” for President Donald Trump to pardon him of his crimes.

“President Trump, I appreciate if you can give me a consideration,” Santos said in the interview. “I’m not an altar boy, not pretending to be one, but I’m not a hardened criminal who deserves to be in prison for seven years, off what I would call ‘ambitious mistakes’ and something that I deeply regret. And I would like to take all the bad I’ve done and transform it into a positive… to be able to sniff out bad actors doing similar actions that I did.”

He cited concerns about being in danger in prison, specifically from immigrants who may be frustrated with his immigration policies.

Santos said he believed his trial to be politicized and that his sentence was unjust. He said he intends to move out of the United States after he is released from prison.

Murray also expressed these concerns, calling the sentence “excessive” and “unprecedented.” He said it is “archaic” to sentence a non-violent first-time offender to prison for financial crimes.

“Why are the taxpayers being burdened with having to now have him locked up in a cage for seven years when, in fact, he should be out in the community making amends and repaying his debt to society?” Murray previously said. “I don’t see how this benefits anyone.”

Murray said he believed this case to be politically motivated, saying the court acted without precedent.

Santos’ announcement not to seek a pardon follows Trump’s latest series of pardons and commutations on Wednesday, May 28.

These encompassed former elected officials, including New York Rep. Michael G. Grimm, who pleaded guilty to felony tax evasion in 2014, and ex-Connecticut Gov. John Rowland, who pleaded guilty to conspiracy to steal honest services in 2004 and was convicted again in 2014 for conspiracy to hide his work on political campaigns.

Trump has pardoned six members of Congress over his two terms.

Santos has until July 25 to turn himself in to begin his prison sentence.