New: We've identified more than a dozen top donors to Santos' 2020 campaign who do not seem to exist. I also spoke to a friend of Santos' who says he did not give the $2,800 donation attributed to him. motherjones.com/politics/2023/…

A retiree named Stephen Berger at an address on Brandt Road in Brawley, CA, was listed as giving $2,500. William Brandt and his wife have lived at that home for at least two decades. He did not donate to Santos, nor does he know Stephen Berger.

Victoria and Jonathan Regor of 45 New Mexico St in Jackson, NJ, were reported as each giving $2,800. The issue: There is no record of a Victoria or Jonathan Regor living in the United States. Nor is there a 45 New Mexico St in Jackson.

It is illegal to donate money using a false name or the name of someone else. “It’s called a contribution in the name of another,” says @SGhoshCLC. “It’s something that is explicitly prohibited under federal law.”

One donor I contacted is a friend of Santos' who gave a small donation in 2020. He was shocked to learn that a $2,800 donation was later made in his name. He found no record of being charged $2,800, meaning someone may have used his name in a straw donor scheme.

For the small donation he did make, his employer is described correctly in FEC records. In the one he says he didn't make, his employer is an aborted hand sanitizer venture that only he and Santos worked on.

Santos did not respond to detailed questions. He did tell his friend, “I’m letting my legal team handle this stuff. I’ve never been involved in the financial aspect or the filing aspects of the campaign.”

@nlanard You mean Vandelay industries.

Not all of Santos' donors are fake. I've spoken to some of them. One was told to drive an hour to meet Santos. Santos then stood him up. Santos later called this donor asking for more money. He did not give again.

@nlanard "Hand sanitizer venture". So the next thing we learn is that he was taking Covid relief money fraudulently?

@nlanard Aborted hand sanitizer ? Sounds nasty.

@nlanard I wonder if WinRed itself makes such scams easier, as it centralizes so many donors for different campaigns it generates a ready made list of potential strawmen.