Former congressman could plead guilty on Monday – NBC New York

The fraud trial of former U.S. Rep. George Santos could be paused as sources familiar with the case now say the Long Island politician is expected to plead guilty on Monday.

A hearing on the proposed guilty plea is scheduled for 3 p.m. in federal court, two sources familiar with the matter told News 4.

Santos' attorney did not respond to requests for comment, and spokespeople for the FBI and U.S. Attorney's Office declined to comment.

The former congressman had pleaded not guilty to a number of financial crimes, including lying to Congress about his wealth, collecting unemployment benefits while actually working, and using campaign contributions to pay for personal expenses such as designer clothing.

Santos is expected to plead guilty to several charges.

In court, Santos' lawyers rejected the prosecutor's allegations made in earlier lawsuits that the prosecutor was not fully participating in the required pre-trial document exchange, known as discovery.

Prosecutors said this month they had turned over more than 1.3 million pages of documents, while defense attorneys submitted just five. But under pressure from the judge, Santos's lawyers insisted they had turned over every document in their possession.

“We're not stonewalling,” said Joe Murray, a lawyer for Santos. “Surveillance is not my style of operation.”

The New York Republican's lawyers had argued in recent court filings that a questionnaire on the “knowledge, beliefs and prejudices” of potential jurors was necessary because of the extensive negative media coverage of Santos. Santos was expelled from Congress in December after an ethics investigation found “overwhelming evidence” that he had broken the law and exploited his public position for his own benefit.

They cited more than 1,500 articles from major news outlets and a “Saturday Night Live” skit about Santos. They also noted that similar questionnaires have been used in other high-profile cases in federal court in New York, including the trial of notorious drug lord Joaquín “El Chapo” Guzmán.

“Essentially, Santos has already been found guilty in the court of public opinion,” the defense memo filed last week said.

Prosecutors, however, expressed their opposition in a brief, arguing that Santos' request was merely a delaying tactic because the trial date was set more than nine months ago and about 850 potential jurors had already been subpoenaed.

They argued that the public perception of Santos was “largely of his own making” as he spent months “courting the press and garnering media attention.”

Judge Joanna Seybert on Tuesday granted Santos' request for a partially anonymous jury, in which the identity of each juror will be known only to the judge, the two parties and their attorneys. Prosecutors had previously said they did not object to the measure given the high profile the case is receiving.

Government lawyers also want to admit into evidence some of the lies Santos spread during his campaign. Before he was elected to represent parts of Queens and Long Island in 2022, he falsely claimed he had graduated from both New York University and Baruch College and worked at financial giants Citigroup and Goldman Sachs.

Prosecutors argue that these blanket falsifications are “inextricably linked to the charges against him.”

Last month, a federal judge denied Santos' request to drop three of the 23 charges against him. Santos dropped his futile attempt to return to Congress as an independent in April.