Ex-LAUSD employee and vendor charged in alleged $22M contract scheme

A former Los Angeles Unified School District information technology employee and the owner of a technology vendor were charged in a scheme that directed about $22 million in district contracts to the vendor, county prosecutors said.

Hong “Grace” Peng, 53, of Pasadena, was charged with one felony count each of money laundering and having a financial interest in a contract or purchase made in an official capacity.

Gautham Sampath, 53, of Texas, was charged with one felony count each of money laundering, having a financial interest in a contract or purchase made in an official capacity and aiding and abetting a government official to have a financial interest in a contract or purchase made in an official capacity.

Peng, a former technical project manager for the school district, is accused of illegal participation in the awarding of district contracts, most related to the LAUSD’s My Integrated Student Information System (MiSiS) to Innive, a company owned by Sampath. Those contracts added up to more than $22 million, the district attorney’s office said.

Sampath then routed and laundered more than $3 million back to Peng through intermediaries, prosecutors said.

Peng resigned from the LAUSD after search warrants were served at her home and workplace in 2022. Sampath and his company have government contracts throughout the U.S., the DA’s office said.

An arrest warrant was issued for Peng. An extradition warrant was issued for Sampath. Details regarding their whereabouts were not immediately available.

“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. “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 said text messages between Peng and Sampath were part of the investigation. After Peng was given a contract that was going out for bids in February 2018, Sampath texted, “Delete all the watsup (sic) chats… If anyone see the text about these internal thing it will be a prb,” according to the DA’s office.

Hochman said the messages include a June 2018 exchange in which Sampath asked, “What r the other opportunities in Lausd. That we can exploit. Any other area.”

Peng replied that there are “a lot of them,” prosecutors said.

About a month later, Hochman said Peng text, “You’re so lucky… I am on the selection committee… 5 companies responded.”

After Sampath replied, “Why did you say Innive is lucky,” Peng said, “Because you have me… lolo… On the selection committee…. It’s cone of silence… I broke all law for you already lol,” Hochman said.

“Their own text messages will prove the mental intent,” Hochman said. That intent to defraud. The intent to commit money laundering. The intent to violate our conflict of interest laws.”