- A New York grand jury indicted a former fundraiser for Rep. George Santos' 2020 and 2022 campaigns.
- The indictment alleges that Sam Miele impersonated someone without their permission in order to solicit more than a dozen donations.
A former fundraiser for GOP Rep. George Santos' campaign has been indicted by a New York grand jury, charging him with four counts of wire fraud and on count of "aggravated identity theft."
Prosecutors allege that Sam Miele, who worked with Santos' 2020 and 2022 campaigns, solicited more than a dozen donations by impersonating someone else without their permission.
While the indictment does not say who, exactly, Miele impersonated, previous reporting from The Washington Times and CNBC notes that Miele took on the identity of Dan Meyer, House Speaker Kevin McCarthy's former chief of staff.
The indictment does, however, note that Santos was informed of the deceit in September 2022 via a letter from Miele, where the staffer admitted to "faking my identity to a big donor."
The Washington Times said in its report that Miele was ultimately fired from his position for impersonating Meyer, though it's unclear how soon after.
Miele's indictment comes three months after federal prosecutors unsealed a thirteen-count indictment against Santos that included charges of theft of public funds, wire fraud, and money laundering. In a separate court filing, prosecutors noted that Miele and Santos' cases "may be presumptively related."
Santos' short time in Congress has been plagued with controversy after reports began to arise shortly after he was elected that he lied about key aspects of his resume while on the campaign trail.
He said, for example, he used to work for Goldman Sachs and Citigroup, but neither business said he ever worked there. He claimed he was a "proud American Jew," another apparent lie, as he now says he's Catholic. He also said he went to Baruch College and New York University, a claim that neither of the schools was able to verify.