- A former chief of staff for California Gov. Gavin Newsom has been indicted on 23 federal felony fraud charges in connection with missing campaign funds.
- Dana Williamson is accused of helping divert $225,000 from a campaign account belonging to then – California Attorney General and former HHS Secretary Xavier Becerra.
- Williamson has pleaded not guilty, while two alleged co-conspirators have reportedly pleaded guilty to related charges.
- The indictment also alleges Williamson filed false tax returns and made false statements to the FBI.
A former chief of staff for California Gov. Gavin Newsom was indicted on bank and wire fraud in connection with a scam to steal campaign money, according to federal prosecutors.
Dana Williamson, 53, of Carmichael, California, was arrested on Nov. 12 after a federal grand jury indicted her last week. She faces 23 felony charges that also include conspiracy to defraud the government, filing false tax returns, and making false statements to the FBI for allegedly diverting $225,000 from a dormant campaign account, prosecutors said.
The account belonged to former Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra, according to published reports by the Associated Press and the San Francisco Chronicle.
Williamson served as Newsom’s chief of staff from 2023 through 2024. Williamson was also Becerra’s campaign manager when Becerra ran for California attorney general in 2018.
Williamson pleaded not guilty to all charges during her first court appearance in Sacramento, California, on Nov. 12 as a judge ordered her released from custody, the Associated Press reported. Her attorney, Matthew Rowan, did not immediately return USA TODAY’s request for comment.
Becerra is a former 12-term Congressman and California attorney general who was appointed health secretary by former President Joe Biden. Becerra, currently a candidate for California governor in 2026, is not implicated in the indictment. Only known as Public Official 1 in court documents involving Williamson’s indictment, Becerra confirmed his identity in a statement to multiple news outlets.
Before holding roles with Newsom and Beccera, Williamson held a cabinet role in former California Gov. Jerry Brown’s administration before starting her own political consultancy firm.
Prosecutors allege Williamson, Sean McCluskie, Becerra’s chief of staff at the time of the alleged misconduct, and Greg Campbell, a former prominent lobbyist, as well as two unnamed people, are accused of taking funds from Becerra’s campaign account by using Williamson’s political consulting company to bill the campaign under false pretenses.
The funds would then be sent to McCluskie’s wife for work supposedly done for Williamson, according to an indictment unsealed on Nov. 12. The money, in the form of $10,000 monthly payments, was then funneled through various business entities and disguised as pay for a “no-show job,” from February 2022 to September 2024, FBI Sacramento Special Agent in Charge Sid Patel said in a news release.
“Today’s charges are the result of three years of relentless investigative work, in partnership with IRS Criminal Investigation and the U.S. Attorney’s Office,” Patel said. “The FBI will remain vigilant in its efforts to uncover fraud and corruption, ensuring our government systems are held to the highest standards.”
A spokesperson for Newsom’s office said in an emailed statement to USA TODAY that the governor is not involved in the matter and that the governor’s office put Williamson on leave as soon as she told them she was under criminal investigation.
“Ms. Williamson no longer serves in this administration,” Newsom’s spokesperson said in a statement. “While we are still learning details of the allegations, the Governor expects all public servants to uphold the highest standards of integrity.”
Becerra, in a statement obtained by the AP, said he has voluntarily cooperated with the Justice Department’s investigation.
“The news today of formal accusations of impropriety by a long-serving trusted advisor are a gut punch,” Becerra told the news outlet. Becerra’s campaign did not immediately return USA TODAY’s request for comment.
Campbell and McCluskie pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit bank fraud and wire fraud, and Campbell to an additional charge of conspiracy to defraud the U.S. government, court filings disclose, the San Francisco Chronicle reports.
Former Newsom aide indicted also charged with filing false tax returns
The grand jury indictment claims that Williamson filed false tax returns, claiming more than $1 million in deductions for her business from 2021 to 2023 that prosecutors said were for personal and nondeductible expenditures, including private jet travel, hotel stays, home furnishings and designer handbags.
When questioned by FBI agents about diverting campaign funds and public corruption allegations, Williamson gave the authorities false statements, prosecutors said.
Williamson could face up to 20 years in prison if convicted, prosecutors said.
