The president of the Los Angeles Unified School District and his cousin were charged on Wednesday for allegedly reimbursing nearly $25,000 to donors that he claimed in a campaign filing form, the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office announced.

Refugio (Ref) Rodriguez and Elizabeth Tinajero Melendrez were each charged with one felony count of conspiracy to commit assumed name contribution and 25 misdemeanor counts of assumed name contribution. Rodriguez also faces one felony count each of perjury and procuring and offering a false or forged instrument.

The defendants are scheduled to be arraigned after 1:30 p.m. today in Department 30 of the Foltz Criminal Justice Center. The Los Angeles City Ethics Commission received a whistleblower complaint in March 2015 about Rodriguez’s fundraising activities.

Rodriguez, who earlier this summer became LAUSD’s president, announced in November 2014 that he was running for the school board. Despite his late start in the filing period, he raised more than $50,000 during his first campaign reporting that ended Dec. 31, 2014.

In total, 25 donors, most of whom were family and friends, were allegedly paid back $24,250. The donors’ names were listed on a campaign finance report that was allegedly signed by Rodriguez under the penalty of perjury and submitted to the commission, prosecutors said.

Commission staff found that nearly half of the campaign contributions were allegedly fraudulent because Rodriguez and Melendrez reimbursed them. If convicted, Rodriguez faces four years and four months in custody, while Melendrez faces up to three years in local custody.

LAUSD released a statement by General Counsel David Holmquist.

“L.A. Unified has been made aware of the charges against Dr. Ref Rodriguez,” he said. “These allegations are not connected to any district business. However, we will cooperate, as needed, with the District Attorney’s Office.