Brazilian authorities are reviving a 2008 criminal fraud case against Republican Rep.-elect George Santos (NY), the New York Times reported on Monday.
Santos is accused of using a stolen checkbook to spend almost $700 under a false name at a clothing store in the Brazilian city of Niterói. The case had been suspended for more than a decade because prosecutors were unable to locate Santos.
Nathaly Ducoulombier, a spokeswoman for the Rio de Janeiro prosecutors office told The Times that they will make a formal request to the U.S Justice Department to notify Santos of the charges, then the case will proceed with or without him.
Last month, Santos admitted to lying about parts of his résumé but claimed that he hasn’t committed any crimes.
“I am not a criminal. Not here, not abroad, in any jurisdiction in the world have I ever committed any crimes,” he said.
However, Santos reportedly admitted to check fraud on a Brazilian social media website in 2009, telling the owner of the checkbook: “I know I screwed up, but I want to pay.”
Santos is already under investigation by federal prosecutors, looking into his finances and the office of the district attorney in Nassau county, N.Y announced they are investigating him as well.
Even before this latest report, Democrats were demanding that he step down, but Santos has given no indication that he will do so. He is expected to be sworn in on Tuesday to the 118th Congress.
