(CNN) Named by Rep. George Santos himself is the treasurer of his campaign committee, marking the latest twist in a months-long saga of confusing filings his campaign made with federal regulators.
The new filing, made Friday afternoon by the Federal Election Commission, comes more than a week after federal prosecutors unveiled a 13-count criminal indictment, charging the New York Republican with there’s wire fraud, fraudulent receipt of Covid-19 unemployment benefits and lying. about his personal finances in the 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 on Saturday, saying it was to “ensure compliance.”
“My goal is to operate beyond criticism,” the new lawmakers said 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 about the identity of Santos’ campaign treasurer have been swirling for a long time. This year, Santos’ campaign named a new treasurer identified as Andrew Olson, but federal and state records do not show anyone with that name serving as treasurer on any of the other committees. federal or any political committees operating in the state of New York.
At the time Olson was added as treasurer, the address associated with him and the Santos campaign was a mixed-use apartment and commercial building in Elmhurst, New York, where the congressman’s sister lived until early this year. year.
Earlier this month, Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics, a Washington watchdog group, filed a complaint with the Federal Election Commission questioning Olson’s existence and asking the agency to investigate whether the campaign has potentially violated state finance laws. campaign with files listing that person as treasurer.
Political committees are not allowed to raise or spend money without a treasurer. Candidates can legally serve as treasurers for their own campaigns, but they rarely do.
During his short time in Washington, Santos’ campaign filings faced intense scrutiny. They ranged from questions about several campaign expenses listed at $199.99 — a penny below the threshold at which campaigns must keep receipts — to confusion over who filed the treasurer’s role.
On Jan. 25, for example, Santos’ campaign enlisted a Wisconsin political consultant to replace longtime congresswoman Nancy Marks’ treasurer. But the consultant’s lawyer said the campaign did it without his permission, and his client refused the job.
Then, on January 31, Marks informed the FEC that he had resigned. Later that day, Olson’s electronic signature first appeared in a Santos report.
Santos previously argued that the charges were not his responsibility.
“I didn’t touch anything with my FEC, did I?” he told CNN in January. “So don’t joke and report that I did because you know every campaign hires fiduciaries.”
This story has been updated with additional information.
CNN’s Andrea Cambron contributed to this report.