Judge KP George money laundering trial: Opening statements began Thursday
Fort Bend County Judge's money laundering trial begins
Opening statements are done and a witness took the stand for the money laundering trial of Fort Bend County Judge KP George. FOX 26's Leslie DelasBour breaks down what happened in the courtroom on Thursday.
FORT BEND COUNTY, Yexas - Opening statements are expected to begin on Thursday in the money laundering trial of current Fort Bend County Judge KP George.
George was charged with two counts of money laundering between $30,000 and $150,000 in April 2025. The punishment range is two to 10 years in prison, if convicted.
According to court documents, the offense occurred between Jan. 12, 2019, and April 22, 2019.
The Fort Bend County judge was also indicted on a misdemeanor charge of identity misrepresentation that is unrelated to the money laundering case.\
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KP George pleaded not guilty to both of the money laundering charges.
State
The prosecutor opened by saying the case is about the $46,500 in campaign donations George allegedly stole. According to the State, he claimed there was $399 in his campaign account which was not true.
They began searching into George in 2019 after he allegedly had begun transferring thousands of dollars into his personal account, prosecutors say.
George is also accused of using campaign money to put towards buying his home.
The state’s first witness — an investigator with the Fort Bend County District Attorney’s Office — testified the office first began looking into George’s finances in 2019, with additional concerns surfacing in 2024 during a separate investigation tied to George’s social media use during his re-election campaign.
Investigators say public records show George reported having $399 in his campaign account when records showed nearly $40,000, and that thousands were transferred into personal savings.
Opening statements begin Thursday in KP George trial
Opening statements begin Thursday in the money laundering trial of Fort Bend County Judge KP George.
Defense
The defense opened by talking about George's upbringing in southeast India and sighted his humble beginnings.
According to the defense, evidence will show all the money involved was donations.
The defense pointed out the investigator only reviewed George’s 2018 county judge campaign and did not examine records from his previous runs for office.
George’s attorneys argue the case is politically motivated and say the money came from legitimate campaign donations and repayments.
The defense says George and his wife invested a lot of their personal money into the campaign and legally repaid themselves.
Jury selection process
George and his attorneys vetted potential jurors for two days and those selected have been sworn in.
Money laundering accusations
The backstory:
Court documents from prosecutors allege George lied under oath about how much money he had in his campaign account. They go on to claim he transferred money from his campaign account to his personal account.
Records go on to allege George engaged in a scheme to defraud campaign donors and obtain money using fraudulent pretenses. Prosecutors allege he accepted thousands of dollars in campaign contributions he used to personally enrich himself.
KP George loses primary
Dig deeper:
George was first elected to serve as county judge in 2018, and he was re-elected to the office in 2022. He ran as a Democrat in both of those elections.
However, George switched to the Republican Party in 2025. He ended up receiving lowest number of votes in the recent March 3 Republican primary and is out of the running for re-election.
The Source: Information gathered from Fort Bend County public court records and previous FOX 26 reports. FOX 26 reporters were also in the courtroom for the jury selection.