REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst”
A campaign fundraiser for indicted Rep. George Santos (R-NY) has himself been indicted on four federal felony counts stemming from emails and phone calls in which he allegedly impersonated a high-ranking aide to House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-CA).
Samuel Miele, who worked for Santos during the 2020 and 2022 election cycles, is facing four counts of wire fraud and one count of aggravated identity theft, according to an indictment unsealed Wednesday.
Miele posed as McCarthy’s chief of staff, Dan Meyer, while communicating with more than a dozen potential donors during the last half of 2021, the indictment alleges. He did this “falsely and without authorization,” to raise money for Santos—and a 15 percent commission for himself, the feds say. Miele made phone calls as Meyer, and sent emails from an account set up in Meyer’s name, according to the indictment. The funds were then deposited into Santos’ campaign account, after which Miele got his cut, the indictment states.