George Santos thought nothing of stealing money from campaign donors when he was a New York Congressliar, but when he heard he was headed to prison for the next seven-plus years, the fraudster broke into tears.
"It was quite dramatic," said CNN's Brynn Gingras, who was in the courtroom today during the sentencing. "George Santos put his hands over his face and he was just sobbing in court."
But the conman's crocodile tears were too little too late. "[The judge] listened to him and she just does not believe he feels any guilt," Gringas added.
"One of the things that was interesting that did come up in court today was the fact that he made over $360,000 with Cameo appearances, with documentary appearances going on podcasts, and the judge says, 'I find it incredible that you didn't even set up a savings account to begin the process of paying back these people that you defrauded.'"
The blubbering convict will begin his 87-month prison stay on July 25.
Santos had barely even been elected when it was revealed he had lied about virtually his entire campaign biography, from where he previously worked to his ethnic heritage, and things went from bad to worse after federal prosecutors charged him with a brazen fraud scheme in which he stole money from campaign donors. He was overwhelmingly expelled from the House in a bipartisan vote following a blistering ethics report against him, and he went on to take a plea agreement.
Gingras added that what particularly enraged the judge in this case was Santos' apparent lack of remorse for his crimes…
A tearful Santos issued a statement about how he regretted his actions and the fact he had lost public trust, Gingras continued, "But really, it was not enough."
Previously: Conman Congressperson George Santos headed to the hoosegow
