The FBI raided the headquarters of the Los Angeles unified school district, the second largest school district in the US, as well as the home of Alberto Carvalho, the district’s superintendent, federal officials confirmed on Wednesday.
An unnamed source familiar with the investigation told the Associated Press that authorities served warrants that were part of an “ongoing investigation”.
Ciaran McEvoy, a spokesperson for the US attorney’s office in Los Angeles, confirmed that a search took place.
“We can confirm a search pursuant to an under seal, court-authorized warrant. We will have no further comment,” McEvoy said.
The Los Angeles unified school district said in a statement that it was “informed of law enforcement activity” at its headquarters and at Carvalho’s home.
“The district is cooperating with the investigation and we do not have further information at this time.”
Footage captured by ABC7 showed Carvalho’s street in San Pedro blocked off with crime scene tape while FBI agents were outside his home.
Authorities reportedly also searched a property in Florida, where Carvalho worked before he came to Los Angeles.
James Marshall, an FBI spokesman in Miami, told the AP that agents searched a residence in Broward county, west of Fort Lauderdale, on Wednesday morning and “have since cleared the scene”.
The Los Angeles unified school district serves more than 500,000 students in more than two dozen cities.
Carvalho has served as superintendent since February 2022, and previously oversaw Miami-Dade county public schools from 2008 to 2021. He was credited with improving graduation rates and academic performance in Florida’s largest school district. In September, the Los Angeles board of education voted to keep Carvalho on as superintendent for four more years.
