The FBI Came Knocking at LAUSD: Why the Raid on Superintendent Alberto Carvalho Should Surprise No One

When federal agents show up at your door at 6 a.m. with raid jackets and cardboard boxes, it rarely means good news. For Los Angeles Unified School District Superintendent Alberto Carvalho, that reality arrived on the morning of February 25, 2026 — and for the parents, taxpayers, and watchdogs who have spent years raising alarms about LAUSD’s financial management, the knock was long overdue.

A District-Wide Reckoning Arrives in San Pedro

Just before sunrise, FBI agents descended on two locations across Los Angeles: the downtown headquarters of the nation’s second-largest school district, and the quiet San Pedro home of Superintendent Alberto Carvalho. Neighbors watched in alarm as agents in blue raid jackets carried cardboard boxes from the property. One neighbor reported seeing a man placed in handcuffs, though this has not been officially confirmed.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Central District of California offered a brief but telling statement: “Law enforcement is executing a judicially approved search warrant at those locations. We have no further comment.” Multiple sources confirmed the investigation is white-collar in nature — financial crimes, not violence. The specific allegations remain under court seal.

LAUSD responded with a carefully worded statement saying it is “cooperating with the investigation.” Carvalho offered no comment at all.

That silence should speak volumes.

An $18.8 Billion Budget — With No Accountability to Match

LAUSD operates on an $18.8 billion annual budget — one of the largest of any school district in the country. It is a government institution funded by California taxpayers and entrusted with educating over 500,000 children across more than two dozen cities. Despite that staggering fiscal firepower, the district is projecting a $1.6 billion deficit by 2027–28, while weighing layoffs for more than 3,200 employees.

The question every taxpayer should be asking is the same one federal investigators appear to be pursuing: Where is the money going?

Voters Said “Fund the Arts.” LAUSD Said “Fund Ourselves.”

In 2022, California voters passed Proposition 28, dedicating roughly $1 billion annually statewide to arts and music education. The law was unambiguous: funds must supplement — not replace — existing arts spending, and districts must hire new teachers, not simply redirect money to existing payroll.

LAUSD was allocated roughly $77 million under Proposition 28 for the 2023–24 school year. According to a lawsuit filed in February 2025 by former LAUSD Superintendent Austin Beutner — the man who authored Proposition 28 — the district did exactly what the law prohibits. “LAUSD has willfully and knowingly violated the law,” Beutner said, “and as a consequence, is harming hundreds of thousands of students by depriving them of the arts education that they are entitled to under law.”

The lawsuit — backed by major unions including UTLA, SEIU Local 99, and Teamsters 572 — alleges the district used Proposition 28 dollars to cover the salaries of existing arts staff, effectively pocketing voter-approved funds meant to expand programs for children.

What makes this especially damning: Carvalho did not deny it. In an August 2024 memo to the LAUSD Board, he acknowledged in writing that “the District prioritized the use of Prop 28 funds to cover existing staff as well as hire new staff” — a clear admission that the law was violated. The Board’s response? They unanimously renewed his contract for another four years in September 2025.

Parents Locked Out, Children Left Behind

While administrators redirected taxpayer dollars, the families who depend on LAUSD were left in the dark. At many schools, there was simply no conversation about Proposition 28 — parents had no input, no transparency, and no recourse.

Parent Vicky Martinez put it plainly: “I had more arts than my kids do. It makes me angry that our kids are being denied the arts when there’s been so much research about how it keeps kids engaged in school.” Her 15-year-old son suffers from severe anxiety. She believes arts education — the kind Proposition 28 was designed to fund — could help. Instead, the money was absorbed into the bureaucratic machine.

This is more than a financial scandal. It is a parental rights failure. When a district makes major spending decisions with zero community input, it is not serving families — it is dismissing them.

The Chatbot, the Crooked Vendor, and the Missing Due Diligence

In 2024, Carvalho championed an AI chatbot called “Ed,” built by a Boston startup, AllHere. Three months after launch, the chatbot was quietly shut down. In November 2024, federal prosecutors charged AllHere’s founder and CEO with securities fraud, wire fraud, and aggravated identity theft, alleging she had claimed $3.7 million in annual revenue when the real figure was just $11,000. LAUSD spent approximately $300,000 on the failed product.

The question isn’t just about the money lost — it’s about due diligence. In an $18.8 billion organization, how does a vendor with fraudulent financials land a high-profile contract with the nation’s second-largest school district?

A Troubling Track Record the Board Chose to Ignore

Before joining LAUSD, Carvalho led Miami-Dade County Public Schools. In September 2021 — just before LAUSD hired him — the Miami-Dade Office of the Inspector General confirmed that under his leadership, $6 million earmarked for drivers and special education had been misallocated. A separate OIG review found his actions gave the “appearance of impropriety” regarding a $1.57 million charitable donation.

These findings were public. On the record. The LAUSD Board hired him anyway — and later renewed his contract as lawsuits mounted. That is not an oversight. That is a governance failure rooted in a culture that allows administrators to fail upward while taxpayers and children bear the cost.

Accountability Is Not Optional — It Is the Foundation

The conservative principle at the heart of this story is simple: power entrusted must be power accountable. Laws passed by voters must be followed — not creatively reinterpreted by administrators. And when officials misuse the public trust, they must face real consequences — not contract renewals and silence.

Carvalho has not been charged with any crime, and every American is innocent until proven guilty — that principle must be honored. But the pattern of conduct across multiple districts and multiple years demands more than cooperative statements. It demands full transparency and genuine accountability.

Conclusion: The Voters, the Children, and the Bill That Comes Due

The FBI does not serve search warrants on a whim. Federal judges do not sign them without cause. Whatever the investigation ultimately reveals, February 25, 2026, marks a turning point for a district that has operated for too long without the fiscal discipline that taxpayers have every right to expect.

California’s parents voted for better arts education — they got a $77 million shell game. They voted for accountable leadership — they got a superintendent under federal investigation. They funded an $18.8 billion budget — they got a district staring down a $1.6 billion deficit.

Enough is enough. The time for vague statements and institutional cover has passed. It is time for answers.

📢 Call to Action

Stay informed. Stay engaged. Hold the line.

• Share this article so your community knows what’s happening inside one of America’s largest school systems.
• Demand independent audits of how voter-approved funds are being spent in your local district.
• Vote in your school board elections — these down-ballot races have enormous consequences for your children and your tax dollars.
• Subscribe to our newsletter to stay current as the LAUSD federal investigation develops.

The price of freedom is eternal vigilance — and that includes watching where the school board puts your money.

Sources: ABC7 Los Angeles, PBS NewsHour, EdSource, LA Magazine, The Current Report, Miami-Dade OIG, NBC Los Angeles, Los Angeles Times, U.S. Attorney’s Office — Central District of California.