The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) has opened an investigation into Rep. George Santos (R-NY) over an alleged charity scheme, according to The Daily Wire.
Santos is accused of raising money through his pet charity, Friends of Pets United, to help disabled Navy veteran Richard Osthoff get surgery for his service dog. Osthof claimed he never got the money and his dog, a pit bull with a stomach tumor at the time, never got the surgery.
According to Politico, two FBI agents reached out to Osthoff on Wednesday on behalf of the U.S. Attorney’s Office in the Eastern District of New York. Osthoff handed the agents text messages he had with Santos from 2016.
FBI agents are investigating Rep. George Santos’ role in an alleged GoFundMe scheme involving a disabled U.S. Navy veteran’s dying service dog https://t.co/wp8uk45DsW
— Jonathan Lemire (@JonLemire) February 1, 2023
“I’m glad to get the ball rolling with the big-wigs,” Osthoff said in an interview Wednesday. “I was worried that what happened to me was too long ago to be prosecuted.”
The FBI is investigating Rep. George Santos’ role in an alleged GoFundMe scheme for a veteran's dying dog. pic.twitter.com/tvFSYb8b2X
— TODAY (@TODAYshow) February 2, 2023
Santos, who went by the name Anthony Devolder at the time, opened a GoFundMe account that helped raise $3,000 for the surgery but allegedly took the funds for himself. According to Osthof, who spoke with Patch News, Santos closed the account as soon as it hit the $3,000 goal and became difficult to reach.
“He stopped answering my texts and calls,” Osthoff said. “I contacted ( Santos ) and told him ‘You’re messing with a veteran,’ and that he needed to give back the money or use it to get Osthoff another dog. He was totally uncooperative on the phone.”
Osthoff revealed that Santos told him he planned to use the money raised for his dog’s surgery for other animals.
The latest development is one of several scandals that have rocked Santos in the short time since he became a lawmaker. Santos recently admitted to fabricating portions of his life. The freshman lawmaker has also been caught making outlandish claims, including that his mother was at the World Trade Center when it was attacked in 2002.
Santos was also outed as a former drag queen who went by the name “Kitara” while he was living in Brazil.
