CENTRAL ISLIP, N.Y. (AP) — Disgraced former U.S. Rep. George Santos was sentenced Friday to over seven years in prison, sobbing as he learned his punishment for the crimes that led to his expulsion from Congress.
Santos, who pleaded guilty last summer to federal wire fraud and aggravated identity theft, appealed for mercy. In a federal court a short drive from his old congressional district, he said through tears that he was “humbled” and “chastened” and understood he had betrayed his constituents’ trust.
“I offer my deepest apologies,” he said, adding: “I cannot rewrite the past, but I can control the road ahead.”
U.S. District Court Judge Joanna Seybert evidently wasn’t convinced.
“Where is your remorse? Where do I see it?” she asked as she sentenced him to 87 months behind bars. “It’s always someone else’s fault.”
The New York Republican, who must report to prison July 25, didn’t respond to reporters’ questions outside the courthouse.
Hours later, though, he took to social media angling for a White House reprieve, despite saying in recent days he wouldn’t seek clemency.
“I believe that 7 years is an over the top politically influenced sentence and I implore that President Trump gives me a chance to prove I’m more than the mistakes I’ve made,” he wrote on the social platform X late Friday.
