Disabled NJ Vet Says FBI Investigating Santos Over GoFundMe For Dying Dog

FREEHOLD, NJ — A disabled Navy veteran says FBI agents are investigating his claim that New York Rep. George Santos raised $3,000 through a GoFundMe for his dying dog and then disappeared with the funds.

Richard Osthoff, who lives in Freehold now, said he has received a "two or three" phone calls from FBI agents in the last few days about the May 2016 GoFundMe campaign to raise money for Osthoff's dog, Sapphire, who had a stomach tumor and needed surgery to save her life.

He's hopeful the investigation will result in Santos — whom he knew through text messages as Anthony Devolder — being held accountable for his actions.

"I just want to see him pay for what he did," Osthoff said.

Osthoff had been told Sapphire's surgery would cost $3,000, and because he was homeless, living in a tent off Route 9 with his dog after a broken leg left him jobless, Osthoff couldn't afford the surgery.

The campaign created by Anthony Devolder raised the $3,000 thanks to contributions from a number of people, including Osthoff's family and friends. But after it reached the $3,000 mark, Osthoff said, Devolder closed the account and disappeared with the money. Read more: Disabled Veteran: George Santos Took $3K From Dying Dog's GoFundMe

"I just want to see him pay for what he did," Osthoff said.

Anthony Devolder is a previous name used by Santos, who has been the focus of dozens of questions about his background, his resume, his family and other claims since late 2022, after he was elected to the House of Representatives.

Santos included Anthony Devolder as part of his name in a news release in 2019 published by the National Herald announcing George Anthony Devolder Santos was running for Congress.

Santos has denied knowing Osthoff in multiple interviews, including text messages with Semafor, since Patch first reported about the GoFundMe on Jan. 18.

"Of course he doesn't know me, he refused to meet me," Osthoff said Thursday. "I think he refused to meet me to make it easier to take the money."

Osthoff still has the posts of the GoFundMe campaign on his Facebook account:

Osthoff, who was honorably discharged from the Navy in 2002, was living in a tent off Route 9 in Howell in 2016 after having lost his job and then his housing when he was out of work due to a broken leg. Sapphire, his service dog who was a gift from a veteran's charity, lived with him.

Osthoff said he was referred to Devolder by a veterinary technician who said Devolder ran a pet charity that could help, Friends of Pets United. No entity by that name ever received 501(c)(3) status from the IRS and none by that name was registered with either New York State or New Jersey as a charity.

After Devolder and the money disappeared, "I had to sit and watch her (Sapphire) die," Osthoff said. "It broke my heart."

He said he went to Howell Township police, but because he didn't have much information beyond Devolder's name, tracking him down was nearly impossible.

"I felt like crap we couldn’t find him when it first happened," he said. Seeing Santos on TV with reporters chasing him and referencing the name Devolder helped Osthoff put it together.

Osthoff said he initially was contacted by the New York State Attorney General's Office on Jan. 19. He was not sure of the status of that investigation. He also said he feared the statute of limitations had run out on the case, he said the FBI agents told him that Santos using an alias is what makes a potential prosecution possible.

Osthoff, who has a home and works full-time for a sports netting company, said he doubts he will see a dime of the money that was raised for Sapphire, or even an apology from Santos.

"He never even said he was sorry," Osthoff said. "That he would do this to me with no remorse, he deserves whatever happens if he ends up in an orange jumpsuit."

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