George Santos names himself treasurer of his campaign committee

Rep. George Santos has named himself the treasurer of his campaign committee, marking the latest twist in a monthslong saga over puzzling filings his campaign has made with federal regulators.

The new filing, made late Friday afternoon with the Federal Election Commission, comes a little more than a week after federal prosecutors unveiled a 13-count criminal indictment, charging the New York Republican with wire fraud, fraudulently obtaining Covid-19 unemployment benefits and lying about his personal finances on forms he submitted to the US House of Representatives as a candidate. He has denied wrongdoing and pleaded not guilty to the charges.

Santos defended the move Saturday, saying it was to "ensure compliance."

"My intent is to operate above reproach," the freshman lawmakers said on Twitter. "We will continue to build our campaign around professionals with subject matter expertise."

He added that FEC records will be updated to reflect the change.

Questions long have swirled about the identity of Santos' campaign treasurer. This year, Santos' campaign named a new treasurer identified as Andrew Olson, but federal and state records did not show anyone with that name serving as the treasurer of any other federal committees or any political committees operating in New York state.

At the time that Olson was added as treasurer, the address associated with him and Santos' campaign was that of a mixed-use apartment and commercial building in Elmhurst, New York, where the congressman's sister had resided until earlier this year.