A former Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) employee is facing felony charges for her role in a $22 million money laundering and fraud scheme involving funneling contracts to a Texas-based vendor.
The Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office alleges that Hong “Grace” Peng, a Pasadena woman who worked as an LAUSD technical project manager, illegally awarded contracts to Innive, a company owned by Gautham Sampath, who was also charged in the scam that went down between 2018 and 2022.
Investigators described the pay-to-play scheme as one of the largest money laundering scandals in the history the Los Angeles Unified School District. https://t.co/wp6Hp7yXEc pic.twitter.com/JDRI0uoAL6
— KTLA (@KTLA) March 27, 2026
“Investigators described the pay-to-play scheme as one of the largest money laundering scandals in the history the Los Angeles Unified School District,” according to KTLA.
The 53-year old Peng has been charged with felony counts of money laundering and having a financial interest in a contract or purchase made in an official capacity, the DA’s office announced. Sampath, also 53-years-old, was charged with one felony count each for money laundering and aiding and abetting a government official to have a financial interest in a contract or purchase made in an official capacity.
“This case involves a blatant abuse of public trust — funneling taxpayer dollars intended for students into personal coffers,” Los Angeles County District Attorney Nathan J. Hochman said in a statement.
“This vendor, working with an LAUSD project manager, allegedly carried out a multi-year, multi-contract pay-to-play arrangement that siphoned millions of dollars from our schools. We will not tolerate public officials who sell out their responsibilities or contractors who line their pockets by gaming the system. Both will be held fully accountable,” Hochman continued.
“Between 2018 and 2022, Peng, who served as a technical project manager for LAUSD, is accused of illegally participating in the awarding of contracts primarily related to the district’s My Integrated Student Information System (known as MiSiS) to Innive, a company owned by Sampath. The contracts totaled more than $22 million,” according to a press release from the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office. “Sampath is further accused of routing and laundering over $3 million back to Peng through various intermediaries.”
“Peng resigned from LAUSD after a search warrant related to the investigation was served at her home and her workplace in late 2022. Sampath and his company Innive currently have government contracts throughout California and across the country,” the statement read.
“I broke all law for you already lol,” Hong allegedly texted a co-conspirator, the Los Angeles Times reported. Hochman provides additional detail in a video linked to the DA’s office press release.
“The case first come to light in April 2022. Since that time, LAUSD’s Office of Inspector General and the DA’s Bureau of Investigation have been actively working on the case. Some of the text messages and payments discovered are reflected in the charging document,” the DA’s office noted.
“An arrest warrant has been issued for Peng and an extradition warrant has been issued for Sampath,” according to Hochman’s office. They face up to seven years in the county slam if convicted.
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