George Santos reminded on Veterans Day that he was accused of scamming Navy vet

Brian Niemietz, New York Daily News on Nov 11, 2025

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A Veterans Day message from George Santos was greeted with a reminder that, before going to prison, he was accused of scamming a Navy vet who blamed the disgraced congressman for the death of his emotional support dog.

“Happy Veterans Day! Thank you to all veterans for your service!” Santos posted on X Tuesday.

He was quickly met with replies from social media users who recalled former sailor Richard Osthoff telling Patch in January 2023 that Santos once raised $3,000 to have a tumor removed from his service dog’s stomach, then kept the cash for himself and left Sapphire to die after the growth became enlarged.

“Little girl never left my side in 10 years. I went through two bouts of seriously considering suicide, but thinking about leaving her without me saved my life,” Osthoff told the outlet. “I loved that dog so much, I inhaled her last breaths when I had her euthanized.”

Osthoff, who was homeless and disabled at the time, said he resorted to panhandling so he could afford to have Sapphire put out of her misery and cremated.

Santos at one point denied knowing Osthoff and dismissed his accusation as “ shocking and insane.”

When Santos was released from prison in October after less than three months — when President Trump commuted his seven-year sentence on unrelated fraud charges — Osthoff told CNN he felt gutted all over again.

“I was devastated, completely devastated that the president would do to this to me and the veteran community,” Osthoff said.

He added that since Trump returned to office, he’s lost access to his psychologist and his primary care physician. He also told CNN he’s considering suing Santos.

“I think I deserve an apology and I think all the veterans and military members deserve an apology for letting that guy out,” Osthoff said. “He did it to me, but he did it to everyone who ever wore a uniform.”

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