Federal prosecutors are investigating former Rep. George Santos over wagering on his own attendance at President Trump’s State of the Union address after the prediction market he placed bets on flagged the case.
The former New York congressman and convicted felon said he would be watching the presidential speech in person, bet against his own attendance and opted not to show up, according to multiple reports.
Mr. Santos’ trades reportedly raised red flags for online prediction marketplace Kalshi, prompting it to freeze his account and alert the Department of Justice and Commodity Futures Trading Commission, both of which then opened investigations.
“Well, that’s news to me,” Mr. Santos told NPR when asked about the investigation. As to whether he had an account on Kalshi, he said, “I’m not saying yes, I’m not saying no.”
Months after his release from federal prison after being granted clemency by Mr. Trump, Mr. Santos said on social media that he was planning to attend the president’s February address.
“I’m going to be there for the State of the Union in the gallery, guys,” he said in a video the day before.
He then reversed course, claiming he was watching on an airport TV, which was “not part of the plan!”
NPR reported that Mr. Santos had already placed bets on Kalshi that he would not attend in person, personally profiting “tens of thousands of dollars.”
A month later, he addressed complaints about manipulation on his podcast, saying, “I guess people lost money.”
“Some people made unexpected money. That’s to show you how fragile these markets are,” he added.
Mr. Santos is no stranger to run-ins with the law or lies that made him a pretty penny.
Mr. Santos’ tenure in Congress was cut short in 2023 after he was expelled from the House for fabricating much of his biography, misusing campaign funds and other financial misdeeds.
Within months of being sworn into office, he was indicted and later convicted for federal wire fraud, aggravated identity theft, money laundering, falsifying records and theft of public funds. He was expelled from Congress just before completing his first year in office.
Mr. Santos pleaded guilty to wire fraud and was sentenced to more than 7 years in federal prison. But he only served four months when Mr. Trump commuted his sentence in October.
Prediction markets have prompted lawmakers and federal regulators to keep a close eye on them, as suspicious wagers — including a soldier involved in the capture of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro winning over $400,000 predicting the date of his capture — have prompted probes.
