Draft:Samuel Miele

Samuel Miele is an American businessman, fundraiser and Republican Party operative. Born in Green Village, NJ, Miele attended St. John’s University in Queens, NY, where he majored in Government & Politics.

In 2021, Miele founded The One57 Group, a political firm that raised money for Republican candidates on local, state and federal levels, as well designing logos and building websites for campaigns.

Miele was a top paid operative for Republican representative George Santos during both his 2020 and 2022 Congressional campaigns. He was also considered a close confidant to the congressman.

On August 16, 2023, Miele was indicted for wire fraud and aggravated identity theft, in relation to allegedly impersonating U,S, Speaker of the House Kevin McCarthy's chief of staff to a wealthy donor. He pleaded not guilty in United States v. Miele.

Miele's attorney, Kevin Marino, was former President Donald J. Trump’s campaign manager’s attorney. Marino has said, "Mr. Miele is not guilty of these charges. He looks forward to complete vindication at trial as soon as possible."

On November 14, 2023, Miele pleaded guilty to one count of wire fraud, admitting to impersonating another aide to raise funds for Santos. He also admitted to committing access device fraud by making unauthorized donations to the Santos campaign with wealthy donors’ credit cards to inflate the books. Though not charged for the conduct, he also stipulated to soliciting almost $500,000 from a wealthy donor that had not yet been used towards the original purpose of the solitication, agreeing to return the money. Miele has not yet implicated anyone else in his crimes and has not confirmed whether he is cooperating in the case against Santos.

His sentencing is set for April 30, 2024, and faces a maximum of 20 years in federal prison.