Former school district financial officer charged in $1M fraud scheme

HOUSTON - A 50-year-old Tomball resident has been charged with wire fraud after allegedly stealing approximately $996,174 from Tomball Independent School District, announced Acting U.S. Attorney John G.E. Marck.

Kristi Williams is set to make her initial appearance before U.S. Magistrate Judge Richard W. Bennett July 13 at 10 a.m.

According to the criminal information, Williams was the manager of Property Tax Administration at Tomball ISD from January 2018 until November 2023 and oversaw the collection of local property taxes.

The charges allege that when a taxpayer paid in cash, a tax office employee would place it inside an envelope and record the payment in specialized software as part of a batch. Once the amounts reached a certain threshold, either $15,000 or $20,000, the batch was closed and Williams was expected to deposit the money into Tomball ISD's bank accounts, according to the allegations.

Williams allegedly used the software to reverse the payments in the system and kept the funds for her own personal use.

If convicted, Williams faces up to 20 years in federal prison as well as a possible $250,000 maximum fine.

FBI conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney John Lewis is prosecuting the case.

A criminal information is a formal accusation of criminal conduct, not evidence. A defendant is presumed innocent unless convicted through due process of law.