A Republican Congressman has reportedly been indicted for his alleged role in a fraudulent “Nigerian Prince” crypto scam.
According to a new report by The New York Times, George Santos, a U.S. Representative of New York, has been charged for allegedly perpetrating a scheme that resembles the classic Nigerian Prince email fraud.
The report says that Santos and two of his associates approached a wealthy investor to help a Polish citizen unfreeze his funds so he could purchase crypto assets.
The donor was immediately skeptical as the identity of the Polish investor remained undisclosed and the plan, which involved having the donor create a limited liability company (LLC) to gain access to the frozen funds, made no sense. However, the group did not ask the affluent investor for money directly.
The investor, who asked to have his identity hidden, told The New York Times that the interaction between him and Santos’ party was so odd that he thought they themselves were being conned.
He was then asked to sign a nondisclosure agreement, and when he asked for it to be modified, the talks between him and Santos ceased, according to the report.
Santos has been charged with 13 felonies, including allegedly misrepresenting his earnings, embezzlement of campaign funds, and unemployment fraud.
Santos has pleaded not guilty, but if he’s convicted of the charges, he faces up to 20 years in prison.
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