The two people who guaranteed George Santos’ $500,000 bond are his father, Gercino dos Santos Jr., and his aunt, Elma Santos Preven

The two people who guaranteed George Santos’ $500,000 bond are his father, Gercino dos Santos Jr., and his aunt, Elma Santos Preven.

We finally know who bailed Rep. George Santos (R–NY) out of jail—despite the beleaguered congressman claiming he’d rather go to jail than give up their names.

Court documents unsealed Thursday revealed that Santos’ father and aunt put up the $500,000 bail bond that allowed Santos to walk free after his arrest by federal authorities last month.

The two people who guaranteed George Santos’ $500,000 bond are his father, Gercino dos Santos Jr., and his aunt, Elma Santos Preven.

Santos’ father and aunt both donated thousands to his congressional bid, according to federal elections data. Preven’s social media accounts reflect a particular interest in Brazilian politics, as she has posted material critical of the country’s left-wing President Ignacio Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva and supportive of his far-right foe and predecessor, Jair Bolsonaro. A United States Postal Service worker, she owns properties in both Queens and in Brazil.

While only their signatures appeared on the unsealed document, a source close to the matter confirmed their names as Gercino dos Santos Jr. and Elma Santos Preven.

Gercino dos Santos Jr., Santos’ father, lives in New York and previously worked as a house painter, according to The New York Times. While the identities of signatories are normally made public, Murray pointed to the “media frenzy and hateful attacks” faced by Santos as a reason to make an exception. Santos told reporters after his initial court appearance they would “never get” information about the source of his bail funds, claiming the media would “harass them and make their life miserable.”

But after news organizations pushed for the filings to be made public, a federal judge denied Santos’ request to keep the information secret. Santos appealed the decision, with his lawyer arguing that the co-signers should be given the opportunity to withdraw their support before the names are released. The appeal was denied on Tuesday.

The source of the bail funds has stoked widespread speculation, including allegations by some House Democrats that a financial supporter of the congressman could be seeking to exert political influence.

Earlier this week, Reps. Dan Goldman, D-N.Y., and Greg Landsman, D-Ohio, introduced a resolution calling on the House Ethics Committee to disclose the names so they could determine whether Santos was in violation of congressional gifting rules.

Santos pleaded not guilty on May 10 to a 13-count indictment charging that he duped donors, stole from his campaign, lied to Congress about being a millionaire and cheated to collect unemployment benefits he didn’t deserve.