For more than a dozen contributors listed as donating large sums of money to the campaign of Rep. George Santos (RN.Y.), financial records could not be matched, Mother Jones found in an investigation of the records.
Donors identified as Victoria and Jonathan Regor, for example, each contributed the maximum amount allowed — $2,800 — to Santos’ first bid for a New York City seat in 2020, which he lost, he noted magazine.
Despite a database search, no one named Victoria or Jonathan Regor could be located anywhere in the United States, Mother Jones reported Friday. Additionally, the store added that their listed address — 45 New Mexico Street, Jackson Township, New Jersey — does not exist.
Santos’ 2020 campaign finance reports also list a “Stephen Berger” at a Brandt Road address in Brawley, Calif., who donated $2,500. But a spokesman for farmer and Republican donor William Brandt told Mother Jones that he has lived at the Brandt Road address for at least 20 years and “neither he nor his wife gave to George Santos.” Brandt has no idea who “Stephen Berger” could be.
Separately, the documents show another $2,800 campaign donation attributed to a friend of Santos, who denied that Mother Jones contributed.
Such “questionable donations” represent more than $30,000 of the $338,000 Santos campaign raised from individual donors in 2020, according to the magazine.
Santos’ campaign documents are starting to look as confusing as the lawmaker’s life stories. He lied about his heritage, family, education and work experience. However, Santos has brushed off calls for his resignation and said he was just “polishing” his resume.
Changes this week to the latest campaign finance forms indicate that a $700,000 donation to his last Long Island campaign that lawmakers claimed was his loan did not come from Santos after all. That leaves a significant mystery about the source of the funds.
Santos said he earned $55,000 a year before launching the Devolder Organization in 2021. However, funding to start the mysterious company — which had no website and was dissolved shortly after launching — is unclear.
He said the company, said to be worth millions, raised his salary to $750,000. This allegedly helped fund his campaign, which has now been contradicted by changes to his campaign finance statement. An agitated Santos insisted to reporters Wednesday that he was not personally involved in altering campaign finance reports.
Santos’ election commission also told federal regulators on Wednesday that it had hired a new treasurer, but the man it appointed said he did not accept the job.
The Washington Post reported Friday that the Justice Department told the Federal Election Commission to delay any civil law enforcement action over possible violations by Santos’ campaign. It’s the clearest signal yet that the Justice Department has already launched its own criminal investigation into Santos’ campaign finances, the Post noted.
Santos could not be reached for comment.
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