Oct. 5 (UPI) -- Rep. George Santos' former campaign treasurer, Nancy Marks, pleaded guilty to federal charges on Thursday in New York.
According to ABC News, Marks allegedly was behind the false donor names that were used to inflate the amount of campaign money Santos reported he had collected. That amount was crucial to Santos being able to qualify for national party support.
The case against Marks shares the court docket number as Santos' case, CNN reported, noting that the charge against her is directly related to her work for the New York House freshman.
Marks was a longtime GOP operative on Long Island and was in charge of finances for the Santos campaign before she was fired after campaign filing abnormalities came to light.
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Santos, R-N.Y., who has admitted to lying about his qualifications after he was elected to his House seat, already pleaded not guilty in May to a 13-count indictment that includes fraud, money laundering and theft of public funds.
Marks resigned from Santos' campaign in January shortly after news first broke about his dishonesty over his back story and resume.
Santos blamed Marks when asked about the source of his fundraising and spending.
The House Ethics Committee in June expanded its investigation into Santos. Samuel Miele, Santos's former fundraiser, was federally charged in August with five counts of allegedly impersonating former Speaker Kevin McCarthy's chief of staff while soliciting donations for Santos's campaign.
Miele pleaded not guilty, but prosecutors have suggested that a plea deal may be in the works.
Santos has called his indictment "a witch hunt," has refused to resign from Congress and said he plans on defending his seat in the 2024 election.
