The Hill News

Freshman Rep. Rick Crawford (R-Ark.) has asked the FBI to investigate whether his political opponents illegally obtained and circulated his personal financial data. 

Crawford formally made the request on Friday, asking the agency to explore if "Democrat operatives" sparked an inquiry into a debt payment he made to a hospital resulting from his 1994 bankruptcy, The Associated Press reported. 

The Arkansas Democrat-Gazette recently questioned the timing of the payments he made to the hospital, bringing up the bankruptcy that Crawford's Democratic opponent Chad Causey used against him during the 2010 campaign.

Here is more from The Associated Press:

His spokeswoman, Anna Nix, said someone has accessed Crawford's personal records and is releasing that information.

"We don't know who, we don't know how. It has to do with finances. It has to do with medical records. It seems very suspicious," Nix said.

She said Crawford was "suspicious" of the newspaper's questions about the repayment of his debt.

"You have a lot of information. We don't understand how you came about that."

Crawford said later in a statement to the newspaper that he's "distressed and sickened" by the actions of political opponents. The statement called for the newspaper to cooperate with any investigation and to provide any evidence it may have.

Crawford beat Causey to take the seat of former Rep. Marion Berry (D), who retired. No Republican had held the seat since Reconstruction.