Governor Gavin Newsom’s (D-CA) former chief of staff Dana Williamson has been arrested and 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,” U.S. Attorney Eric Grant announced.
Between February 2022 and September 2024, Williamson conspired with others to redirect about $225,000 in funds from a non-active political campaign to an associate’s personal use. The funds were funneled through business entities and disguised as pay for a “no-show job.”
Williamson also “subscribed to false tax returns claiming more than $1 million in business deductions for what were actually personal and nondeductible expenditures, such as private jet travel, luxury hotel stays, home furnishings, and designer handbags, as well as deductions for no-show jobs for friends and family,” the press statement explains.
A co-conspirator in the case, Sean McCluckie, is the former chief of staff to former U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra, who previously served as California attorney general.
“The news today of formal accusations of impropriety by a long-serving trusted advisor are a gut punch,” Becerra said in a statement, adding, “As California’s former Attorney General, I fully comprehend the importance of allowing this investigation and legal process to run its course through our justice system.”
Grant called the development a “crucial step in an ongoing political corruption investigation that began more than three years ago.”
“As it always has, the U.S. Attorney’s Office will continue to work tirelessly with our law enforcement partners to protect the people of California from political corruption,” said Grant.
