George Santos Under Investigation for Prediction Market Trades

Former U.S. Representative George Santos is facing investigations related to his trading activities on the prediction market Kalshi. The Justice Department and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission are looking into claims that Santos deceived the public regarding his presence at Trump’s State of the Union address in February, potentially benefiting financially from the trades. Kalshi’s officials noticed that Santos bet against his appearance, despite posting a video showing excitement for attending the event.

When the news broke, Santos called the journalist who reported the story. The call, from a blocked number, occurred at 5:37 p.m. in Los Angeles. Santos was angry, denying the investigation and accusing the story of containing errors. Despite his denials, federal authorities in New York and Washington have been referred to this matter by Kalshi.

During the call, Santos refused to allow the conversation to be recorded. However, the journalist took detailed notes. When asked about his legal representation, Santos insisted he had a legal team but didn’t provide any names. He used derogatory language towards NPR, attempting to undermine the credibility of the news outlet and its reporter.

“This story is going to get you a gun in your face,” Santos allegedly said during the call. When questioned further, the context of these words remained vague. Later, he would deny making the threat, saying it would ‘blow up in his face’ instead.

The journalist found Santos’s phone number through public records and sent a confirmation text. Santos responded with further denial and insults. He preemptively denied making the threat before it was publicly addressed.

Santos later took to social media, specifically X, denying any aggressive behavior towards journalists. He claimed that he was never threatening, only sassy. He accused the journalist of inventing threats and demanding lawyer details.

Threats to journalists are common, often from online trolls or representatives trying to shield their clients. Determining the seriousness of such threats can be challenging. The journalist decided to expose Santos’s mischaracterizations and attempts to retract earlier statements.

Since the investigation story’s release, the Associated Press reported that Polymarket, a competitor to Kalshi, has severed ties with Santos. He was previously paid by the company to promote prediction market content on social media. Meanwhile, Santos is offering discounted personalized videos on Cameo, but future denials of his comments on X can’t be discounted.