BREAKING: FBI Arrests Gavin Newsom’s Former Chief of Staff!

Are the walls closing in on Gavin Newsom?

It sure looks like it.

Today the FBI arrested his former Chief of Staff:

JUST IN: 🇺🇸 California Governor Gavin Newsom's former chief of staff arrested for conspiracy to commit bank and wire fraud.

— Remarks (@remarks) November 12, 2025

While everyone is of course innocent until proven guilty, the charges are quite extensive and serious:

-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
-Making false statements

BREAKING: Dana Williamson, Former Chief of Staff for Gavin Newsom, has been ARRESTED by the FBI on MULTIPLE charges, including:

-conspiracy to commit bank and wire fraud
-bank fraud
-wire fraud
-conspiracy to defraud the United States and obstruct justice
-subscribing to false… pic.twitter.com/naYdyHuUjC

— Libs of TikTok (@libsoftiktok) November 12, 2025

Here is the official press release from the Department of Justice:

And if that’s hard to read, here is a full Transcript:

Here is the full transcription, preserving the original line breaks, spacing, capitalization, and layout as closely as possible:

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THE UNITED STATES
DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE

United States Attorney’s Office
Eastern District of California

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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact: Lauren Horwood
Wednesday, Nov. 12, 2025 Public Affairs Officer
EDCA.gov | @EDCAnews [email protected]

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California Political Consultant and Former Public Official Charged with Conspiracy
to Commit Fraud and Obstruct Justice, False Statements, and Tax Crimes

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Political consultant Dana Williamson, 53, of Carmichael, was
charged by a federal grand jury 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. The 23-
count indictment was unsealed following Williamson’s arrest this morning.

“This is a crucial step in an ongoing political corruption investigation that began more than
three years ago,” said U.S. Attorney Grant. “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.”

“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,” said FBI Sacramento
Special Agent in Charge Sid Patel. “The FBI will remain vigilant in the fight against public
fraud and corruption, and ensure government systems operate to the highest standards.”

“Disguising personal expenses as business expenses — especially to claim improper tax
deductions or to willfully file fraudulent tax returns — damages the integrity of our tax
system,” said Acting Special Agent in Charge Nguyen of IRS-CI’s Oakland Field Office.
“IRS-CI will continue to vigorously pursue those who seek to evade their legal tax
obligations.”

According to court documents, between February 2022 and September 2024, Williamson
conspired with others to defraud financial institutions by using straw donors to obtain
millions of dollars in illicit loans and lines of credit, which were then funneled into
campaigns that Williamson controlled.

Prosecutors also allege that Williamson conspired with a business associate to create
fraudulent invoices that were submitted to a mayoral campaign in January 2024 for work
that was never performed. Another portion of the conspiracy involved a scheme to steal
more than $750,000 by creating Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans made to
Williamson’s businesses.

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.

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When questioned by FBI agents in connection with ongoing investigations into the
diversion of campaign funds, the backdated contracts, and allegations of public corruption,
Williamson made false statements to the agents regarding each of those topics.

Williamson is scheduled to make her initial appearance on the charges at 2:00 p.m. in the
U.S. Courthouse in Sacramento.

The United States concurrently unsealed charging documents related to this case for two
other individuals charged by information.

This case is the product of a multiyear investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation
and IRS Criminal Investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Michael D. Anderson, Rosanne
Rust, and Katherine T. Lydon, and Public Integrity Section Trial Attorney Alexandre
Dempsey are prosecuting the case.

If convicted, Williamson faces a maximum statutory penalty of 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine for each count of bank fraud, wire fraud, and conspiracy to commit bank fraud and wire fraud; up to five years in prison and a $250,000 fine for each count of conspiracy to obstruct and making a false statements; and up to three years in prison and a $100,000 fine for each count of subscribing to a false tax return. Any sentence, however, would be determined at the discretion of the court after consideration of any applicable statutory factors and the federal Sentencing Guidelines, which take into account a number of variables. The charges are only allegations; the defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.

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