The flamboyant, scandal-plagued former congressman—once hailed as the first out gay Republican elected to Congress without being closeted—has officially traded the Capitol for a prison cell. Santos, now 37, surrendered to federal authorities at FCI Fairton in New Jersey to begin serving an 87-month sentence—just over 7 years—for 23 felony counts, including wire fraud, identity theft, and falsifying records. The former New York lawmaker’s fall was as dramatic as his rise. Gay California Representative Robert Garcia—who first called for Santos’s expulsion—told The Advocate,
“I think he’s going to face and do his time, and that’s important for justice, and he lied and committed some horrible crimes, and he’s got to be held accountable for those. At the same time, I hope that he can reflect and when he gets out of his sentence, that he can come to amends and be a better person.”
Santos famously misused donor funds for Botox, Ferragamo shoes, and OnlyFans. And true to form, he told listeners during a final audio broadcast Thursday night,
“I’m surrendering in Ferragamo so I can walk out in Ferragamo,” as he described his preparations for incarceration.
From drag queen Kitara Rivache to Capitol Hill conman, Santos’s saga reads like fiction. As author Mark Chiusano put it: “He believes his own lies.” In his final post on Twitter on Thursday, he says,
“Well, darlings… The curtain falls, the spotlight dims, and the rhinestones are packed. From the halls of Congress to the chaos of cable news, what a ride it’s been! Was it messy? Always. Glamorous? Occasionally. Honest? I tried… most days. To my supporters: You made this wild political cabaret worth it. To my critics: Thanks for the free press. I may be leaving the stage (for now), but trust me, legends never truly exit. “
