Lyin' George Santos would rather go to jail than reveal the names of the people who signed his $500,000 bail bond in his criminal case, his lawyer said in a filing last night. The attorney argues those people "are likely to suffer great distress, may lose their jobs, and God forbid, may suffer physical injury. ...There is little doubt that the suretors will suffer some unnecessary form of retaliation if their identities and employment are revealed.” Via the New York Daily News:
The Long Island Republican was released on bail May 10 after pleading not guilty to wire fraud, money laundering, theft of public funds and making false statements to Congress, but his suretors never appeared in open court to sign his bond — as is typical in federal criminal cases.
In a motion Monday, Santos’ lawyer Joseph Murray objected to the release of their names, asking Long Island Federal Court Magistrate Judge Anne Shields to give the two suretors a heads-up if they must be identified so they could back out to avoid being outed in public.
“If this Court is so inclined to unseal the sureties, we truly fear for their health, safety and well being,” he wrote. “My client would rather surrender to pretrial detainment than subject these suretors to what will inevitably come.”
Curious George is charged with an assortment of schemes, including misuse of campaign funds and a plan to collect covid-related unemployment funds. He's also lied to Congress about his assets and income.
“The public interest in openness is particularly strong in this case. The surety records relate to three individuals who have committed large sums of money to ensure that Rep. Santos can remain at liberty, pending further proceedings,” wrote Dana Green, the senior counsel for the New York Times. “This presents an obvious opportunity for political influence, given Rep. Santos’s elected position and his dependence on these suretors.”
Who, George? He's the very epitome of honesty and integrity! Haha, just kidding!
Murray said Santos originally lined up three financially responsible cosigners as suretors, but one backed out and the other two didn’t show up to his arraignment.
That forced them to make “other confidential arrangements” to ensure Santos’ release, Murray said.
Santos’ bond is unsecured. That means his cosigners didn’t have put up any money up front, but could be forced to pay the full amount if he doesn’t comply with his release conditions or fails to show up for court.
