Rep. George Santos also lied about campaign cash, watchdog alleges

Sketchy Long Island Rep. George Santos likely conspired with corporations, foreign governments or other individuals to illegally feed money into his successful 2022 House campaign, a liberal watchdog group charged in a complaint to the Federal Election Commission Monday.

Santos, 34, who admitted last month to lying about his education, work history, religion and details of his personal life, was already under federal investigation for loaning his 2022 campaign more than $700,000, despite declaring a meager salary of only $55,000 as recently as 2020.

The complaint by the Campaign Legal Center alleged that Santos had hid the true source of his campaign cash while using the mysterious funding for personal expenses.

The document alleged that Santos’ claims of having earned millions in 2021 and 2002 from his “supposed” consulting business Devolder Organization LLC were “vague,
uncorroborated, and non-credible in light of his many previous lies,” and accused the business of being a front for illegal straw donors.

CLC noted that Santos did not report any client payments of more than $5,000 and said it was “wildly implausible” for Devolder to have generated such a windfall.

“It is far more likely, instead, that after failing to win his 2020 bid for Congress, Santos and other unknown persons worked out a scheme to surreptitiously — and illegally — funnel money into his 2022 campaign,” the complaint read. “The concealed true source behind $705,000 in contributions to Santos’s campaign could be a corporation or foreign national — both of which are categorically barred from contributing to federal candidates — or one or more individuals, who would be precluded from contributing such a large amount.”

The group also noted dozens of Santos campaign expenditures that tallied $199.99 — a penny below the $200 threshold for FEC itemization — were also “implausible” and indicated the GOP organization had “deliberately falsified” its reporting.

The Campaign Legal Center noted that expenses like a $199.99 disbursement to the W Hotel South Beach for a Oct. 13 “Hotel Stay” seemed to be fabricated, as the cheapest room at the Miami hotel was priced in excess of $700.

It also pointed out the campaign’s listed expenditures of $199.99 for “Office Supplies” at nine retail chain stores like Best Buy, Staples, Walgreens, Target, and Walmart were “extremely unlikely,” and noted he had suspiciously claimed to have spent between $199 and $200 at Queen’s Il Bacco restaurant on eight separate occasions.

The filing also noted that Santos’ $13,500 in rent payments for “Apartment Rental for Staff” were actually made to pay for a Huntington abode in which he lived “in blatant violation of the law.”

“Voters deserve the truth. They have a right to know who is spending to influence their vote and their government and they have a right to know how the candidates competing for their vote are spending those funds,” said Adav Noti, Senior Vice President & Legal Director at Campaign Legal Center, in a statement.

“George Santos has lied to voters about a lot of things, but while lying about your background might not be illegal, deceiving voters about your campaign’s funding and spending is a serious violation of federal law. That is what we are asking the Federal Election Commission to investigate.”

Santos’ “numerous fabrications” were being investigated by Nassau County prosecutors after the lawmaker admitted to The Post Dec. 26 that he had lied about attending college and a private high school, as well as working at white shoe Wall Street firms.

Santos had also falsely claimed he was Jewish, and lied both about his grandparents escaping the Holocaust and his mother being killed by the 9/11 terror attacks.

The openly gay Republican — who was once married to a woman — has not been seen publicly with his supposed husband and also falsely claimed to be a real estate mogul. In reality, Santos owned no properties and had once stiffed a Queens landlord for a five-figure sum in 2017.

The freshman congressman also faces charges of financial fraud in Brazil stemming from using a stolen checkbook and a fake name in 2008, according to The New York Times, which first uncovered his shocking web of lies.

An investigation into CLC’s claims must be approved by four of the FEC’s six commissioners — three Democrats and three Republicans. The agency is responsible for civil enforcement of campaign finance laws and violators are punished by a hefty fine.

On its website, the FEC said the commission “reviews every complaint filed” but keeps “enforcement matters are kept confidential until they are resolved.”

Santos did not immediately return a request for comment from The Post.