Veteran who alleged George Santos stole money from him for his dying dog says FBI has contacted him

A GoFundMe campaign to raise money for troubled Rep. George Santos and an investigation into Richard Osthoff, a Navy veteran, have both been contacted by the FBI.

In addition to the rising number of legal problems and controversies that Santos, R-N.Y., is facing, Osthoff confirmed the call from the FBI and people with knowledge of the situation confirmed the nature of the inquiry.

The new member has stated that if he is not reelected, he will step down from office and maintains that he is not a “criminal.” He has admitted to lying about some of his past, apologised, and maintained that he was just exaggerating his credentials.

ABC News previously reported that a person close to Santos claimed he operated a GoFundMe account in 2016 under the guise of a nonprofit, Friends of Pets United, and raised about $3,000 to presumably help Osthoff pay for surgery to remove a tumour from his dog.

According to Osthoff, who spoke to ABC News, Santos failed to deliver the money and disregarded text messages requesting it. According to Osthoff, Sapphire, his dog, eventually passed away due to her illness.

Osthoff remarked, “I never want to see someone else, especially another veteran, go through this again.

With the FBI’s assistance, Osthoff told ABC News that he was “happy to get the ball moving with the big-wigs.”

He continued, “I was concerned that what occurred to me was too old to be prosecuted.

A GoFundMe representative said the business will assist with any investigations but would not comment on any specifics.

Friends of Pets United was originally referred to the Santos’ campaign as a 501(c)(3) organisation, but IRS records do not indicate a charity by that name.

On Wednesday, Santos said in an interview with ABC News that he was not aware of the FBI investigation and added of Osthoff, “I have no memory of ever meeting him.” In the past, Osthoff gave a local news organisation texts he claimed to be between him and Santos.

Santos said, “I have no notion, I don’t know what it’s about,” in response to the question of if he was concerned about facing charges. Additionally, he informed ABC News that no one has gotten in touch with him about the probe. “They haven’t gotten in touch with me. So I’m unable to comment “said he.