California governor’s ex-aide arrested in US corruption probe
Sacramento: California Governor Gavin Newsom’s former chief of staff Dana Williamson was arrested in the city of Sacramento after a federal grand jury charged her in a public corruption case, according to the US Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of California.
Prosecutors said the case against Williamson grew out of a three-year investigation involving the FBI and US tax authorities, said the office in a press release.
Citing court documents, the office said that between February 2022 and September 2024, Williamson and others diverted about $225,000 from a dormant political campaign account to an associate’s personal use, routing the money through several business entities and disguising it as salary for what was “in reality, a no-show job.”
The funds came from an inactive campaign account linked to Xavier Becerra, a former California attorney general who later served as US secretary of health and human services. Becerra is not accused of wrongdoing in the indictment, Xinhua news agency reported.
Williamson was also accused of falsely claiming more than $1 million in business deductions for what prosecutors describe as personal luxuries, including private jet travel, high-end hotel stays, home furnishings and designer handbags, on her tax returns, said the release.
The office said she was charged with conspiracy to commit bank and wire fraud, bank fraud, wire fraud, conspiracy to defraud the United States and obstruct justice, subscribing to false tax returns, and making false statements.
If convicted, Williamson could face up to 20 years in prison on the most serious counts, according to prosecutors.
She served as Newsom’s chief of staff from late 2022 until late 2024 and earlier was a Cabinet secretary to former California governor Jerry Brown, as well as campaign manager when Xavier Becerra ran for state attorney general in 2018.
“Ms. Williamson no longer serves in this administration. While we are still learning details of the allegations, the Governor expects all public servants to uphold the highest standards of integrity,” a spokesperson for Newsom said in a statement.