Investor linked to Paxton’s impeachment is arrested on federal charges
The businessman at the center of the charges leading to the impeachment of Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton has been arrested and was due to appear in federal court in Austin on Friday, according to federal prosecutors.
The man — Nate Paul, an Austin real estate investor and a donor to Mr. Paxton’s campaign — was taken into custody Thursday afternoon by the Travis County Sheriff’s Office on behalf of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, according to jail records. Lora Makowski, a spokeswoman for the US law firm in Austin, said Mr Paul will appear before a magistrate on Friday morning.
It was unclear what federal charges Mr. Paul was facing.
Mr Paul became the focus of impeachment proceedings against Mr Paxton last month. A majority of the Texas House of Representatives concluded that Mr. Paxton should stand trial in the Senate on charges such as taking a bribe, disregarding official duty, obstructing justice and abusing the trust of the audience.
Many of the charges centered on allegations that Mr. Paxton used his office to benefit Mr. Paul, who made $25,000 in political contributions to Mr. Paxton’s campaign.
Mr. Paul has been in legal trouble since at least 2019, when FBI agents raided his 9,175-square-foot home and offices in downtown in connection with an investigation they refused to release details of. Investigators from a Texas House committee revealed last month that Mr. Paul asked his friend, Mr. Paxton, to help him learn more about that federal investigation, a request that may have violated state public records laws. stands. And since the FBI raid, Mr. Paul has been embroiled in a number of lawsuits and bankruptcy proceedings.
Mr. Paul has denied any wrongdoing in the case and has said the FBI raid was unwarranted and illegal.
Mr Paul’s call for help from Mr Paxton is the aspect of the case that has attracted the most attention. Investigators and whistleblowers who spoke of what they considered an abuse of power in the Attorney General’s office said Mr Paxton arranged a meeting between Mr Paul and the local prosecutor’s office, later appointing a special prosecutor to investigate the matter The allegations of Mr. Paul about law enforcement abuses, although members of Mr. Paxton expressed concern that these actions might violate the firm’s rules.
It was also found that Mr. Paxton had recommended that Mr. Paul hire a woman with whom Mr. Paxton was having an extramarital affair, and that Mr. Paul’s company later hired the woman as a project manager.
In March, Mr. Paul barely spending 10 days in jail for contempt of court in a civil fraud case brought by an Austin nonprofit that had invested in one of its businesses.
Mr. Paul was once a rising star in the booming Texas real estate industry, both in the capital and beyond. In 2017, when he was 30 years old, Forbes named him areal estate prodigy.” The publication estimated that the company he founded, World Class Holdings, owned $1.2 billion in real estate, a remarkable achievement for a fledgling investor who at one point amassed 10 million square feet of commercial space, including a large inventory of self storage. facilities, according to Forbes. His holdings expanded to include properties in at least 17 states, from California to New York.
The various investigations into Mr. Paul were accompanied by financial setbacks for him. At least 18, according to The Austin Business Journal entities associated with World Class Holdings have filed for bankruptcy protection in recent years.