BROOKLYN (CN) — A Texas man was arrested Wednesday on suspicion of attempting to induce former U.S. Representative George Santos to send large sums of money in exchange for getting the expelled congressman’s criminal charges dropped
According to the indictment filed in the U.S. District for the Eastern District of New York, Hector Medina also attempted to scam "That 70s Show" actor Danny Masterson and others facing criminal liability under the same pretenses.
Santos pleaded not guilty to criminal charges this past May, and did the same for a 23-count superseding indictment in October. He is accused of wire fraud, aggravated identity theft, money laundering and theft of public funds, among other charges.
Prosecutors say Medina, who identified himself as Michael Soto to Santos and others, sent multiple texts, videos and images to Santos and falsely claimed he could arrange for the former congressman’s charges to be dropped in exchange for a large sum.
“If you’re interested, I can get everything dropped, evidence that is on you removed, disappeared. Reach out to me if you’re interested,” Medina said in a July 2023 video sent to Santos, who is not accused of any wrongdoing in the action against Medina.
According to federal prosecutors, Medina said he worked with “prosecutors and judges throughout the United States” to convince multiple individuals facing criminal charges to give him money.
In one text to Santos, Medina wrote, “All I need is for you or someone to wire 900K.”
The indictment does not state if Santos fell for the scam.
According to prosecutors, Medina admitted to sending texts, images and videos to Santos as part of his scheme. The charging documents also state that Medina said he did so because he owed over $100,000 in gambling debts.
Medina also sent messages to Masterson, who was convicted on rape charges in Los Angeles last year.
“I can get the case thrown out or a reduced sentence very low but my people are asking for a $1 million dollar fee,” Medina wrote in one text message to Masterson, according to the indictment.
Medina similarly tried to scam two other individuals who either faced criminal charges or were related to someone who did.
John Marzulli, a spokesperson for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of New York, said Medina surrendered Wednesday morning in his hometown of El Paso, Texas. Marzulli added Medina will appear at a future date in Brooklyn federal court. If convicted, he faces up to 20 years in prison.
Medina is represented by Joseph Veith in El Paso, Texas. Veith did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The arrest comes just over three months after Santos was expelled from Congress after a House Ethics Committee report concluded he “sought to fraudulently exploit every aspect of his House candidacy for his own personal financial profit.”
The committee found the former representative of New York’s 3rd Congressional District made false statements to the Federal Election Commission and spent campaign funds on Botox, designer clothes and the adult content platform OnlyFans.
While Santos has largely maintained his innocence, his former campaign fundraiser Samuel Miele pleaded guilty to wire fraud in November and his former campaign treasurer Nancy Marks did the same on one felony count of conspiracy to defraud the United States. Santos’ trial is slated to begin in September.
Follow @NikaSchoonover
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