FBI raids LAUSD superintendent's home and office

Federal agents searched Los Angeles Unified School District headquarters and the San Pedro home of Superintendent Alberto Carvalho Wednesday morning, the Department of Justice confirmed.

The reason for the searches is unknown. A DOJ spokesperson said the agency has a court-authorized warrant, but declined to provide additional details. The FBI told our media partner CBS LA that the the underlying affidavit remained under court-ordered seal.

LAUSD published a statement online saying the district was aware of "law enforcement activity" at its headquarters and the superintendent's home.

"The District is cooperating with the investigation and we do not have further information at this time," the district said.

Neighbors told LAist they first noticed officers at Carvalho's home around 6 a.m. One of them, John, said an officer told him to stay in his home. LAist agreed not to publish his last name out of fear of reprisal.

At LAUSD's downtown headquarters, multiple district staff members told LAist they were unaware of the raids until they saw the media gathered outside.

Carvalho has been superintendent of LAUSD since 2022, and the board renewed his contract in 2025.

It remained unclear early Wednesday afternoon what the cause of the investigation was, or if it is in any way related to previous issues between the district and the Trump administration.

Carvalho and the district’s elected board have expressed unanimous support for immigrant students, staff and families since President Donald Trump was elected to a second term. The superintendent has also spoken openly about his own journey as a former undocumented immigrant.

The district's first major conflict with the administration began in February 2025, when agents from the Department of Homeland Security attempted to enter multiple LAUSD schools, but were rebuffed.

The DOJ also recently petitioned to join a lawsuit alleging the district discriminates against white students.