Texas county commissioner candidate Taral Patel arrested

Indian American politician arrested on charges of online impersonation and misrepresentation of identity

By DesiMax Wire

Taral Patel, an Indian American Democratic candidate for Fort Bend County Precinct 3 commissioner has been arrested on charges of online impersonation and misrepresentation, according to media reports.

Patel, 30, was arrested Wednesday on a charge of online impersonation, a third-degree felony, and misrepresentation of identity, a Class A misdemeanor, Houston Chronicle reported citing the county district attorney’s office.

As of Wednesday evening, Patel was in the Fort Bend County Jail with bail set at $20,000 on the felony charge and $2,500 on the misdemeanor charge, according to jail records cited by the Chronicle.

The district attorney’s office could not provide more details on the arrest as officials are “under strict ethical guidelines regarding pre-trial publicity,” Wesley Wittig of the Fort Bend County District Attorney’s Office was quoted as saying.

In September, Patel called attention to Facebook comments that called him a terrorist and communist and made derogatory statements about Hinduism.

A spokesperson for Republican incumbent Precinct 3 Commissioner Andy Meyers questioned the credibility of the messages as the office could not authenticate the users that made the comments, according to the Chronicle. Patel, however, did not name his opponent Meyers.

Among the postings was a picture of Meyers standing by the side of a cutout of former US President and the presumptive Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump, during a previous campaign.

Patel, known for his diverse political experience, notably served as the youngest chief of staff for the Fort Bend County judge’s office under Judge KP George, another prominent figure in the Indian-American community.

He has also played strategic roles in various political campaigns, including those of Mayor Bill White, Senator Rodney Ellis, and Wendy Davis.

Son of Indian immigrants and raised in Houston, Patel attended local schools and graduated from the University of Texas at Austin.

According to his website, Patel was appointed by President Joseph R. Biden to serve in the Office of White House Liaison to work on matters related to housing, urban development, and disaster recovery and resilience. During that period, Patel was also a key member of the White House Asian American Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander (WHAANHPI) Committee.