Bank fraud. Alleged corruption and bribery. And now, reportedly millions in unpaid taxes.
That’s the latest in the story of Nate Paul, an Austin real estate tycoon who on Monday was sued by the Travis County Attorney for over $2.3 million in unpaid property taxes and legal fees.
The county says eight businesses owned by Paul each owe tens of thousands in property taxes. According to records, these companies include WC 1ST & TRINITY LP, the owner of a 1-acre piece of land near the Four Seasons Hotel in downtown Austin.
Other properties include an office building near the airport and a Taco Cabana on West Ben White Boulevard.
KUT News called a phone number listed publicly for Paul and sent emails to multiple addresses seeking comment, but did not hear back immediately.
“When I see taxpayers interacting with our office, I see those who are doing their very best to follow the law and play by the rules,” Celia Israel, the county tax assessor-collector, said in a statement. “I do not take this approach of a lawsuit lightly and hope that Mr. Paul, or one of his business representatives, will respond by paying the delinquent taxes.”
A spokesperson for the tax office said Paul owed the most back taxes of any property owner in the county last year.
That’s not entirely surprising, since Paul has spent the last several years liquidating his properties, according to news reports, filing for bankruptcy on several of them.
The real estate developer has also been the subject of criminal lawsuits and allegations. Earlier this year, Paul was sentenced to four months of home confinement in a case involving bank and wire fraud. Most of the charges in that case against him were dismissed.
Paul might be most well known for his role in an FBI investigation of Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, which alleged Paxton accepted bribes from Paul in exchange for favorable treatment from the AG’s office.
Those allegations were echoed in Paxton's impeachment trial in 2023. Ultimately, the attorney general survived impeachment and the FBI did not file any criminal charges against him.
