New York Republican Congressman George Santos signs deal to avoid prosecution over stolen cheques in Brazil

New York Republican Congressman George Santosagreed to a deal with Brazilian public prosecutors on Thursday in order to escape punishment for forging two stolen cheques in 2008. This comes a day after he pleaded not guilty to 13 federal charges on Wednesday. It included counts of wire fraud, lying to the US House, money laundering and theft of public funds.

Santos was charged with a crime in Brazil, according to court documents originally unearthed by the New York Times, for using two stolen cheques to make purchases, including a pair of sneakers he gave to a friend, at a store in the city of Niteroi.

Santos would have been 19 years old at the time. Prosecutors charged in 2011 that the entire cost of the transaction was 2,144 Brazilian reais, which at the time was equivalent to roughly $1,350.

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According to the court documents viewed by the Associated Press, that came after an investigation started in 2008 and Santos' signed a confession, in which he admitted to having stolen the chequebook of his mother's former employer from her purse and made purchases, including in the store, and recognised the fraudulent cheques as the ones he had signed.

The case was halted in 2013 after a court accepted the allegations against Santos in 2011. Subsequent subpoenas for him to personally appear or submit a written defence remained unanswered, and officials were constantly unable to find him.

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It all changed when he was elected to the US Congress, sparking a media frenzy that highlighted his questionable credentials. Then, Rio state prosecutors requested that the case be reopened.

The daily Folha de S.Paulo said that Santos will pay 24,000 reais (about $5,000) in accordance with the conditions of the non-prosecution agreement, with the bulk going to the shopkeeper who was given the faulty cheques and the remaining amount going to charity. The publication did not specify how it acquired this information. According to the newspaper, Santos virtually attended the meeting.

The resolution of the case eliminates the potential that Santos would have had to fly to another nation to settle outstanding charges; this may have been challenging given that he had recently been charged in the US and had to turn in his passport.

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“What would have been the start of a case was ended today,” Santos’ lawyer in Brazil, Jonymar Vasconcelos, told AP news agency.

“As such, my client is no longer the subject of any case in Brazil.”

Vasconcelos declined to answer questions regarding the specifics of the non-prosecution agreement, citing the fact that the case was conducted under seal. The Rio de Janeiro state public prosecutor's office likewise declined to respond.

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