A civil lawsuit accuses a state senator who’s running for governor of funneling more than $2 million from his aircraft chartering company into personal and campaign expenses. Sen. Josh Kimbrell’s campaign dismissed the lawsuit as a political move.
The lawsuit was filed in Greenville County just over two weeks after the Boiling Springs Republican announced his candidacy for governor, joining a growing field of candidates ahead of the June 2026 primary election. Filing for the election is still months away.
“We’re witnessing a regrettable, uncorroborated case of lawfare from a disgruntled, absent business partner with no function or daily involvement in our operations,” Kimbrell said in a statement provided by his campaign. “I’m confident that the facts will come to light, leading to full vindication.”
Kimbrell has not yet filed a formal response to the accusations.
And he did not immediately respond directly to text and voicemail messages left by the SC Daily Gazette.
Kimbrell “used a series of complex financial transactions” to move money from his private charter aircraft company, Exodus Aircraft, to his own bank accounts, business partner Frank Rogers of Greenville claimed in the lawsuit filed last Thursday.
That included putting money from the company into Kimbrell’s own PayPal account, transferring money to his wife, who had no stake in the company, and using credit cards in Rogers’ name, the lawsuit claimed.
Kimbrell also established a second company called Exodus Airways, which he used to divert payments to himself, “capitalizing upon the confusion caused by the strikingly similar name,” the lawsuit alleges.
Kimbrell would tell clients to write checks to “Exodus Air,” allowing him to cash the checks in the Exodus Airways bank account instead of the legitimate Exodus Aircraft account, with the help of a trusted banker, Rogers claimed in a sworn statement.
Exodus Aircraft, which specializes in chartered flights for private businesses, was formed in 2017 in Delaware but operates out of Spartanburg, according to business filings. Rogers bought stake in half the company in October 2022, he said in the statement.
Kimbrell, 40, was first elected to the state Senate in 2020, when he ousted longtime Democratic Sen. Glenn Reese. In November, Kimbrell easily defeated a Democrat challenger for the district that’s entirely in Spartanburg County.
The lawsuit claims Kimbrell began funneling money from the charter business in early 2023 for campaign expenses as well as “recreational and personal uses,” the lawsuit claimed.
Kimbrell secretly pursued business loans using falsified information and, in one case, forged Rogers’ signature, the lawsuit claimed.
When Rogers, who shared ownership of the company with Kimbrell, questioned the company’s financial difficulties, Kimbrell tried to blame Rogers and refused to show him the company’s financial records, the lawsuit claimed.
Rogers determined about $2 million was so far unaccounted for, but that amount could rise, he claimed in the lawsuit.
Kimbrell has since resigned his role as manager of the company, but he still has control of its finances, Rogers claimed. If any more money is diverted from the company, it could be forced to close, according to the lawsuit.
Rogers is asking a judge to intervene and institute a temporary restraining order barring Kimbrell from moving money the company earns from chartering its single 30-passenger jet. If his case is successful, Rogers is also seeking a to-be-determined amount of money accounting for the funds he claims were diverted and any other losses, according to the lawsuit.
Skylar Laird covers the South Carolina Legislature and criminal justice issues. Originally from Missouri, she previously worked for The Post and Courier’s Columbia bureau.
SC Daily Gazette is part of States Newsroom, the nation’s largest state-focused nonprofit news organization.
