George Santos scandal: A operating listing of the Home Republican's most questionable claims

New York Rep. George Santos has not gotten off to a great begin in Congress.

The Republican freshman has been accused of fictionalizing giant chunks of his resume and is dealing with a number of ethics complaints of improper marketing campaign reporting and spending. Santos has been shunned by members of his personal occasion following a wave of adverse headlines that uncovered the various fabrications he is made about his life, training, household, religion, and work. The Lengthy Island lawmaker has admitted to inventing elements of his backstory however has insisted that his work within the Home of Representatives "just isn't about my private life."

Others appear to disagree.

Because the matter is investigated and hashed out within the court docket of public opinion, the listing of issues Santos has stated however can't show about his background retains rising. Here's a look into a few of these claims.

Schooling

Santos has bragged about incomes a level from Baruch Faculty, the alma mater of clothes big Ralph Lauren and Jacqueline Hernandez, the previous COO of Telemundo Enterprises. Santos stated he graduated from Baruch, one of many nation's most ethnically various schools, in 2010, however nobody has been in a position to corroborate these claims and the school stated there have been no information of anybody matching his identify or his date of delivery graduating that 12 months. They did name-drop different notables who took courses at Baruch, together with entertainer Jennifer Lopez and rapper Immortal Method.

Santos additionally claimed he had a level from New York College, which seems to be fabricated as nicely.

In his failed 2020 run for workplace, he claimed on his web site that he attended Horace Mann, a prestigious prep college within the Bronx, however was pressured to drop out as a result of his household did not have the cash to pay for tuition. Officers at Horace Mann stated they don't have any information indicating Santos was ever a member of its pupil physique.

Grandparents, the Holocaust, and being "Jew-ish"

Santos has repeatedly claimed he's a "descendant" of Holocaust survivors.

Throughout a November 2022 interview with the Jewish News Syndicate, he stated he was "very pleased with my Jewish heritage."

"I am very pleased with my grandparent's story," he added. "My father fleeing Ukraine, fleeing Stalin's persecution, going to Belgium, discovering refuge there, marrying my grandmother, then fleeing Hitler going to Brazil. That is a narrative of perseverance. I am so proud. I imply, I want I may have met my grandfather."

In a Could 2022 interview, he stated his grandparents survived the Holocaust.

A 12 months earlier, Santos instructed Fox News his grandparents "escaped socialism, they've escaped communism, and the Holocaust."

Santos additionally claimed to have a Catholic father and a Jewish mom. Nevertheless, his late mom repeatedly posted crosses and different Catholic imagery and adopted a number of Catholic faith-based organizations on social media. A number of on-line family tree reviews appeared to point that each of Santos's grandparents have been born in Brazil years earlier than the Holocaust and that none of his members of the family have been listed in official refugee information.

Santos was invited by the Republican Jewish Coalition in December to gentle the primary candle of the RJC's Hanukkah menorah. It is unlikely he'll be invited again.

"We're very dissatisfied in Congressman-elect Santos," the group stated in a written assertion. "In public feedback and to us personally, he beforehand claimed to be Jewish. He has begun his tenure in Congress on a really unsuitable notice."

Santos has tried to giggle off accusations he fabricated his religion by joking that although he's Catholic, he's "Jew-ish."

Crime

Santos claimed in a sworn assertion that he was mugged in 2016 whereas on his method to pay $2,250 in again hire to his landlord in Queens, New York, throughout an eviction case, Gothamist reported.

Santos claimed he was "unable to offer a police report" and had been instructed by the authorities to return a number of days later to choose one up, in response to the affidavit.

Nevertheless, a spokesperson for the New York Police Division stated there had been no report filed regarding Santos's allegations.

Citigroup and Goldman Sachs

Santos claimed he labored for Citigroup, the third largest banking establishment in america, in addition to Goldman Sachs.

Whereas he has admitted he fabricated his work expertise, he has gone on to say he labored at a 3rd firm that did enterprise with the 2 banking giants. Santos has been requested to offer proof to again up his story however has to date failed to take action.

Santos additionally bragged about criticizing Wall Avenue at a personal fairness convention.

"I did it within the vogue of renewable vitality and world warming," he instructed the This Week's Lengthy Island News podcast. "This was the panel I used to be on. They usually're all speaking about photo voltaic, wind, and this was again, what, seven years in the past now? And I stated, ' what? It is a rip-off. It is taxpayer cash that will get backed.'"

Pulse nightclub taking pictures

In a November 2022 interview with WNYC radio, Santos referred to as the taking pictures at Membership Q in Colorado Springs a "deja vu second."

He went on to say the taking pictures reminded him of the June 2016 taking pictures at Pulse, a homosexual nightclub in Orlando. In that incident, a 29-year-old gunman killed 49 folks and wounded 53 extra earlier than being fatally shot by police. Santos claimed his firm misplaced 4 workers within the taking pictures.

Nevertheless, a deep dive into his background by the New York Instances revealed not one of the folks killed at Pulse ever labored at any of the locations Santos labored or claimed to have labored.

Animal charity

Santos stated he based a charity group referred to as Buddies of Pets United, created to avoid wasting the lives of hundreds of canine and cats.

Nevertheless, the New York Instances, in addition to different publications, haven't been capable of finding any IRS paperwork linking Santos to the group.

He later instructed a reporter that he solely campaigned for the group and tried to seek out foster properties for a couple of of the animals.

Brazil

Santos admitted to stealing a person's checkbook in Brazil and utilizing cash to purchase sneakers and clothes in 2008, CNN reported.

Authorities have been pressured to droop the investigation after Santos fled and remained on the lam for a decade.

Brazilian legislation enforcement officers instructed the New York Instances that they intend to revive fraud costs towards the newly elected lawmaker now that they know the place he's. A spokeswoman for the Rio de Janeiro prosecutor's workplace stated it might ship a request to the Justice Division to inform Santos of the costs.