Disgraced former Rep. George Santos said he wrote suicide notes while in prison, where he spent about three months before having his sentence commuted by President Donald Trump.
Speaking to CBS News, Santos detailed his time in the Federal Correctional Institution Fairton in New Jersey, claiming "no one truly prepares for something like this."
"Imagine a dorm at a camp you really don't want to be at and it's been run down so bad but your parents really force you because they want to get rid of you for the summer - it's kind of the same," he added.
He went on to say he spent 41 days in isolation as a result of death threats. The cell in which he stayed was fewer than six feet wide and nine feet high. He was kept there all day except for an hour for outdoor recreation. "It was mentally tortuous," he added.
In another passage of the interview, Santos described writing the suicide notes, saying he wanted to "document my feelings in case I felt short and weak and did it."
"Three different times. I wrote three different letters," he added, claiming that he also considered hanging himself in the cell. "I decided not to do it all three times ... I want to say God intervened every time. And I stuck to that," Santos said.
Santos had his sentence commuted by Trump last Friday, saying he was "horribly mistreated." "Therefore, I just signed a Commutation, releasing George Santos from prison, IMMEDIATELY. Good luck George, have a great life!"
Santos, elected in 2022 as the first openly gay Republican nonincumbent in Congress, quickly fell from grace after reports revealed he fabricated much of his personal and professional background. In May 2023, he was indicted on 23 counts of wire fraud, identity theft, and other offenses related to misusing donor funds and falsely reporting campaign finances. He had been sentenced to seven years in prison.
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