Two figures in California politics, lobbyist Greg Campbell and former Chief of Staff Sean McCluskie, have entered guilty pleas for crimes involving fraud and conspiracy, as detailed in documents from the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of California. The Sacramento natives found themselves embroiled in a scam that abused an elected official's dormant campaign funds and exploited COVID-19 relief efforts.
Greg Campbell, 52, admitted to charges including bank and wire fraud conspiracy, while 56-year-old McCluskie acknowledged his role in a bank fraud conspiracy. According to court documents, McCluskie leveraged his political position while working for an official who had secured a government role, siphoning around $225,000 over a couple of years for his own use, which supported a bicoastal lifestyle.
The scheme extended to Dana Williamson, 53, who, along with others not yet publicly named, funneled money through various businesses to disguise illegal gains. It included paying McCluskie's spouse for a no-show job, a charade that was perpetuated through fake retroactive contracts to justify ineligible Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans. These loans, initially intended to help small businesses during the pandemic, were wrongfully claimed by lobbying firms that were not supposed to receive them. Campbell's role involved signing falsified documents to conceal the true nature of Williamson's work.
Williamson, facing an array of charges from bank and wire fraud to false tax returns and making false statements, maintains her innocence pending trial. The accused co-conspirators, Campbell and McCluskie, are looking at a potential five-year prison stint for each conspiracy count and fines that could pile as high as $250,000 per count. Their sentencing is scheduled for February 26, 2026. Meanwhile, Williamson's next court appearance, a status conference, is set for December 11, 2025, as reported by the U.S. Attorney's Office.
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