George Santos’ lawyers are having “productive” conversations with the feds about a possible plea deal in his fraud case, they told a judge Tuesday — as the ousted Long Island lawmaker said he wants to return to Congress.
The New York Republican was in Central Islip federal court for a hearing in his identity fraud and embezzlement case, wearing a casual suit and sweater uniform paired with $1,000 Salvatore Ferragamo black shoes, which he told reporters he was wearing “because I hurt my feet . “
But before the court appearance, Santos, 35, told WABC radio’s Frank Morano: “I’m not done with public service. I want to go back to Congress.”
“I did not speak today. I didn’t say tomorrow,” Santos said on the radio show “The Other Side of Midnight” early Tuesday. “I have a lot of things I need to take care of first. I think we all know that, but I have hopes of trying to regain the trust of the American people and go there because I will continue to expose and root out the rot in our federal government.”
In court, Santos’ lawyer Joseph Murray told Judge Joanna Seybert that the trial date of September 9, 2024 cannot be moved up, as the feds are pushing, because the defense team has struggled to sift through more than 1.3 million pages of evidence submitted by prosecutors.
George Santos’ lawyer told the judge his team is in “productive” talks with the feds over a plea deal, as the ousted Republican liar says he wants to return to congress. AP
“We’ve been struggling to get through all that material,” Murray said. “There’s still a million more documents we need to go through.”
“We had a productive conversation,” the lawyer said. “I think this can pay off if we focus on that.”
But prosecutor Jacob Steiner said he wanted to continue the trial as early as June.
Seybert stated that things could move faster for the Santos team because “We don’t have the issue of the defendant having to go to Washington [DC] permanently.”
Santos’ attorneys said they were drowning in evidence submitted by the feds because he opposed moving his client’s trial. Reuters
Still, the judge said his calendar is backed up — largely due to the residual impact of the pandemic-era court slow — and won’t be able to offer hearings earlier than September.
He warned that Santos’ lawyers need to “get on board” and stay informed of the findings in the case because “the government is entitled to a speedy trial, too.”
Santos did not answer reporters’ questions as he waited for an elevator after the hearing, instead saying only: “I hope you all take a break from saying my name.”
Prosecutors asked the judge to move the trial from September 2024 to June 2024. Bloomberg via Getty Images
On the radio show Santos, who was fired from the House of Representatives earlier this month, said New Jersey Democratic Sen. Bob Menendez should not be removed from office until after he faces a corruption trial.
“The reality is, Senator Menendez deserves the presumption of innocence until proven guilty,” Santos told Morano. “He was accused. And don’t forget, Senator Menendez is a perfect example of someone who has defeated him [Department of Justice] on the jury hanging on the past.”
“I am not done with public service. I want to go back to Congress,” Santos told WABC radio. AP
Santos pleaded not guilty to the 23 charges for which he faces up to 22 years in prison if convicted.
Since Santos’ ouster, he has reportedly made money through the video-sharing app Cameo, where every day people can pay celebrities to film messages such as well-wishes and cheers.
Santos will return to court on Jan. 23.
Categories: Trending
Source: thtrangdai.edu.vn/en/
