NRI PULSE STAFF REPORT
Fort Bend, TX, June 18, 2026 — Suspended Fort Bend County Judge KP George has been sentenced to five years of probation and 180 days in county jail after being convicted of felony money laundering, bringing a dramatic fall from grace for one of Texas’ most prominent Indian-American elected officials.
A Texas jury found George guilty in March of laundering campaign funds by transferring approximately $46,500 through personal bank accounts and using some of the money for personal expenses, including a down payment on a home. Prosecutors argued that the transactions were intended to conceal the source and use of campaign funds.
On June 16, the court sentenced George to 180 days in the Fort Bend County Jail, five years of probation, and a $5,000 fine. The judge also imposed a 10-year prison sentence but suspended it in favor of probation. If George violates the terms of his probation, he could be required to serve the prison term.
George was taken into custody following the sentencing.
During the trial, George’s attorneys argued that the funds were legitimate reimbursements because he had previously loaned money to his campaign. Prosecutors, however, maintained that the transfers were structured in a manner that constituted money laundering under Texas law. The jury ultimately sided with the prosecution.
The conviction has already had significant political consequences. George was suspended from office in April and has now been formally removed from his position as Fort Bend County Judge. Local attorney and former judge Daniel Wong has been appointed to serve as interim county judge.
Born in Kerala, India, George was elected Fort Bend County Judge in 2018 and became one of the highest-profile Indian-American elected officials in Texas. His victory was widely viewed as a milestone in the political rise of the state’s growing South Asian community.
However, the money laundering conviction is not the only legal challenge facing the former county judge. George is also facing a separate misdemeanor charge alleging misrepresentation of identity in connection with a fake social media account that prosecutors say was used to target a political opponent. That case remains pending.
George has maintained his innocence and is expected to appeal the money laundering conviction.
The case marks one of the most significant criminal convictions involving an Indian-American elected official in Texas in recent years and has drawn widespread attention across Fort Bend County, one of the nation’s most diverse communities and home to a large South Asian population.
