The U.S. Department of Justice is seeking a sentence of more than seven years for disgraced former Rep. George Santos, who has pleaded guilty to fraud and identity theft, arguing in recent court documents that Santos has shown a lack of remorse and is a risk for recidivism due to his posts on X.
“Since the parties filed their sentencing memoranda on April 4th, Santos has gone on a social media blitz, attacking the U.S. Department of Justice and disclaiming personal responsibility,” the Justice Department wrote. “This conduct is antithetical to the ‘genuine remorse’ claimed by Santos’s attorneys in their sentencing memorandum filed on April 4, 2025….his actions speak louder than any words and they cry out for a significant carceral sentence in this case.”
The Justice Department’s filing includes a series of screenshots of Santos’ posts on X, which they contend illustrate his lack of remorse.
The posts include one on April 4 in which he stated “No matter how hard the DOJ comes for me, they are mad because they will NEVER break my spirit.”
He also denied spending campaign funds on Hermes products in posts, which the courts have determined Santos did among other luxury purchases, according to court filings.
“Even at this late stage, he simply refuses to fully own up to his actions,” the department said.
Justice said Santos’ postings include a “bizarre missive portraying himself as a victim of prosecutorial overreach and selective prosecution,” illustrating his inability to take accountability for his crimes.
In the same post, Santos says he refuses to let them break his spirit and “will NOT succumb to their soul-crushing antics.”
“Put plainly, Santos is not genuinely remorseful, despite accepting responsibility as part of his allocution,” Justice said in court documents. “If he were, his actions would be different. At a minimum, one would expect Santos to approach sentencing with a modicum of restraint so as not to undermine the attorneys who have advocated for leniency on his behalf. Instead, however, Santos has reverted to form and approaches sentencing with belligerence and an insatiable appetite for “likes,” blaming his situation on everyone except himself.”
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 charges of conspiracy to commit offenses against the United States, wire fraud, lying to the Federal Election Commission, falsifying records, aggravated identify theft and device fraud.
In August, 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.
In court, Santos admitted to falsifying campaign fund numbers to meet Federal Election Commission benchmarks to get proper funding from the Republican National Committee – something his campaign treasurer, Nancy Marks, pleaded guilty to. Santos admitted to applying for unemployment benefits during the COVID-19 pandemic despite not being unemployed. He also admitted to using the names of friends and family members to do this. Hence the wire fraud and identity theft charges.
While the Justice Department is recommending a sentence of 87 months, Santos’ legal team requested in court a two-year sentence.
Santos will be sentenced on April 25.
