Fort Bend County Judge KP George is under scrutiny for allegedly coordinating with Precinct 3 candidate Tarel Patel, in creating fake social media posts during George’s 2022 re-election campaign.
According to the Houston Chronicle, a search warrant issued by the Fort Bend County District Attorney’s office targets George’s cellular devices, accusing him of working with Patel, George’s former chief of staff, to misrepresent identities online.
Patel, the Democratic candidate for Precinct 3, was charged in June with four counts of felony online impersonation for creating false Facebook profiles that posted racist remarks about him, in a scheme meant to “influence the result of an election” and “injure” his political opponent, Republican incumbent Andy Meyers.
According to Meyers, Patel participated in a scheme to create false profiles on social media using names and photos of real people to fabricate offensive posts.
The warrant also suggests that George was aware of Patel’s actions and cited text messages between the two, where Patel allegedly shared a fake post with George for approval. For instance, court documents mention that on Sept. 18, 2022, George’s Facebook account posted a collage of racist attacks, including one from a fake account linked to Patel. Shortly after, Patel sent George a message saying, “I am posting the image now.” Later, on Sept. 26, another message from Patel to George included a screenshot from a fake account, asking George for approval to share it.
In his 2022 re-election campaign, George said he was the victim of “racist and xenophobic attacks” via his Facebook page. He is the first person of color ever to hold the position of Fort Bend County Judge.
Despite these accusations, George has not been formally charged. Patel, who is running for Precinct 3 commissioner in the upcoming November election, has yet to withdraw from the race despite calls from fellow Democrat Commissioner Dexter McCoy to do so.
Patel’s court date is scheduled for Sept. 23.
