A man who was briefly an aide to the New York congressman and fabulist George Santos said he got his job after sending payments to a top deputy of the scandal-embroiled Republican.
Derek Myers, 31, told House ethics committee staff on Wednesday that in January, while he was trying to get a job in Santos’s Washington office, he sent at least seven $150 payments to Vish Burra, its director of operations.
Myers shared details including receipts and text messages with the Associated Press. His account raises questions about potential ethical improprieties.
Myers said he began sending the money unsolicited because he believed Burra, a rightwing operative, was not getting paid and could not afford food. Myers said he also hoped the payments might help secure a job.
“Burra was a powerful person,” Myers said. “I wanted him to advocate on my behalf.”
Burra, who helped escort Santos away from journalists after his arraignment in federal court in New York last month, declined to comment.
House staffers questioned Myers as part of an investigation of workplace sexual harassment allegations Myers made after being dismissed by Santos in February.
A former journalist, Myers became a legislative assistant but lasted less than a week. Santos told Myers he was concerned by a background check that showed Myers had been charged with wiretapping in Ohio after publishing a recording of a trial.
In a February letter to the House ethics committee, Myers said he was ousted after he spurned Santos’s sexual advances, alleging the congressman ran his hand along his inner leg and touched his groin. Santos denied the allegation, calling it “comical”.
The ethics committee is investigating several allegations of improper behavior by Santos, who has admitted to fabricating much of his biography and faces federal charges including fraud and money laundering.
Last month, Republicans sidestepped a vote to expel Santos, referring the matter to the ethics committee. The committee has not divulged who it is interviewing or when a decision might be reached.
On Wednesday, staffers spent two hours questioning Myers about his sexual harassment allegation, his relationship with Burra and whether he witnessed illegal behavior. He described finding Burra online, then pushing for a job.
Myers provided documentation, including emails and texts and receipts showing Venmo payments to Burra. Myers said Burra did not ask for money but once requested he “send more pizza”, which he took to be a reference to a pizza emoji used in Venmo subject lines.
Investigators asked Myers about a text exchange after he was offered the job.
Myers asked: “Did you get payroll yet.”
“No. You didn’t have to do that man,” Burra replied, adding: “I’m gonna pay you back for sure.”
Myers acknowledged that he secretly recorded at least one conversation with Santos and shared it with a journalist. He also said he went to the FBI, with the intention of being an informant. He decided to speak out about alleged harassment, he said, after he was forced to leave the job.
Source: US Politics - theguardian.com
