Nancy Marks, the treasurer who oversaw the finances of Republican Rep. George Santos’s political campaigns has agreed to plead guilty to one or more federal felony charges.
Marks has handled the finances of some of New York’s most powerful Republicans over the years and has been dogged by allegations of wrongdoing.
She appeared in federal court in Central Islip, N.Y. on Thursday to formally enter a guilty plea.
Marks waived her right to be indicted by a grand jury and agreed to the as-yet undisclosed charges, according to court papers.
This process is sometimes an indication that a defendant intends to cooperate with prosecutors, but not in every case.
If she chooses to cooperate, it could have a significant impact on the case against Mr. Santos, who in May was indicted and charged with 13 counts of wire fraud, money laundering, stealing public funds and lying on federal disclosure forms. He has pleaded not guilty.
His indictment laid out several schemes, including one in which Santos is accused of pocketing $50,000 in political donations from an unregistered nonprofit. In August, another campaign staff member was indicted in a separate fund-raising scheme.
Santos has consistently denied any involvement in his campaign’s finances, saying that Marks was responsible for all filings. He blamed her for any related issues or discrepancies, telling a conservative news outlet earlier this year that a “former fiduciary went rogue.”
Her case, which was filed as related to his, will be before the same judge overseeing his case, Joanna Seybert.
Ms. Marks had been one of Santos’s closest confidantes, working with him from the beginning of his 2020 campaign through his election in 2022. He, in turn, was one of her most lucrative clients, paying her nearly $240,000, including reimbursements from his campaign and associated PACs.
