NEW YORK — Newly elected Republican congressman George Santos has apologized after admitting he lied about his education and work experience.

Santos, who was elected in New York, told the New York Post: "My sins here are embellishing my resume. I'm sorry."

He insisted he was "not a criminal" and said that the controversy would not deter him from serving his two-year term in Congress.

The allegation was first made in a New York Times report last week.

At the time, a lawyer for Santos hit back at the claims that he misrepresented where he went to college and his alleged employment history, describing them as "defamatory" and a "shotgun blast of attacks".

He said during his campaign that he had worked at high-profile Wall Street firms Goldman Sachs and Citigroup.

But Santos told the New York Post he had "never worked directly" for either firm, admitting it was a "poor choice of words".

The 34-year-old said he actually worked at a company called Link Bridge, as a vice-president, where he did business with both of the financial giants.

He also admitted that he did not go to college, despite previously claiming to have received a degree from New York City's Baruch College in 2010.

"I didn't graduate from any institution of higher learning. I'm embarrassed and sorry for having embellished my resume," he said. "I own up to that... We do stupid things in life."

Santos, who was elected to Congress on Nov. 8 to represent part of Long Island and Queens, took a seat from the Democrats as the Republicans triumphed overall with a slim majority in the House of Representatives, Congress's lower chamber.

His Democratic opponent, Robert Zimmerman, tweeted that Santos had admitted to being a liar and said he must be held accountable by the Department of Justice for his actions.

In a separate tweet he also suggested that Santos should "resign and run against me in a special election" and "face the voters with your real past".

Santos told the New York Post: "I campaigned talking about the people's concerns, not my resume... I intend to deliver on the promises I made during the campaign."

As things stand, he is set to be sworn in on Jan. 3, along with the rest of the incoming class of Congress. — BBC