CONFESSION: Santos penalized for stealing from elderly in Brazil

CONFESSION: Santos penalized for stealing from elderly in Brazil

The most notorious (confessed) thief in Congress just gave a confession and struck a deal to pay restitution in Brazil.

Representative George Santos (R-NY) has confessed to a crime committed over a decade ago.

In exchange for paying a total of $4,800 in court fines and restitution to the victim, he won’t be prosecuted— or extradited to Brazil to face charges.

At the time, his mother was employed as a home health worker, and Santos is said to have stolen a checkbook from one of her clients, using it to make fraudulent purchases of expensive clothing.

However, Santos, aka Kitara Ravache, left the country before the prosecution could occur, and the case was re-opened when he was elected to Congress.

Carlos Bruno Simões, the Brazilian merchant who found himself on the hook for the cost of Santos’ fraudulent 2008 purchase, doesn’t think the Congressman’s confession and fine were sufficient punishment. The Washington Post reports:

“Simões attended the Thursday hearing, which lasted less than a half-hour. He said he was disappointed in how little Santos will be forced to pay him.”

The freshman Republican representative was able to attend a virtual hearing on Thursday for the Brazillian charges, only one day after surrendering himself in person for Federal charges in the U.S.

Here in America, his more serious charges boil down to the same apparent goal: luxury goods and wealth obtained through unscrupulous and allegedly illegal means.

Simões—and others allegedly defrauded by Santos—may find more vindication in the U.S. prosecution that formally began this week.

His $500,000 bail alone (and it’s not clear who paid it) was more than 100 times his total settlement in Brazil, at half a million dollars.

The 13 felony counts, in that case, could net him up to 20 years in prison if he’s convicted.

The merchant, aside from being frustrated by what he sees as the Congressman getting off too lightly for his past misdeeds, also expressed confusion at the path from Brazil to political power, according to the New York Times.

“’Certainly he has an illness,’ Mr. Simões said in the courthouse, adding: ‘It makes me think of the myth of Icarus, the guy who took a bunch of feathers and flew so close to the sun that the feathers melted and he ended up falling and dying.'”

Santos is due back in federal court on June 30th, where prosecutors will reveal more evidence against him.

Stephanie Bazzle

Steph Bazzle is a news writer who covers politics and theocracy, always aiming for a world free from extremism and authoritarianism. Follow Steph on Twitter @imjustasteph. Sign up for all of her stories to be delivered to your inbox here: