Overview
- Multiple outlets and attorneys said this week that Alexis Podesta secretly recorded conversations for the FBI while cooperating in the corruption probe that produced Dana Williamson’s May guilty plea.
- Williamson pleaded guilty in May to charges tied to a scheme that prosecutors say diverted about $225,000 from a dormant campaign account, and court filings show she discussed state business with the unnamed co‑conspirator now identified as Podesta.
- Podesta has not been charged federally, her lawyer has confirmed she cooperated, and reporting says she wore a wire as early as June 2024, which helps explain why dozens of Sacramento insiders later received FBI interception notices.
- Podesta remains on a state board she was appointed to by Newsom and is the subject of state ethics and disclosure inquiries, including Fair Political Practices Commission matters and an allegation over undisclosed lobbying income.
- The governor’s office rejects any proven link between the wired informant and Newsom and says the probe is politically motivated, while prosecutors continue federal and state reviews that could expand or produce new actions.