Embattled Texas GOP AG created 'fake' Uber account to secretly meet mistress: report

16 August 2023

Texas Republican Attorney General Ken Paxton used an alias to summon rideshares to meet with his mistress, Tony Plohetski, Ryan Autullo, and Hogan Gore reported in the Austin American-Statesman on Wednesday.

Paxton was impeached and suspended until September 5th by Lone Star lawmakers on May 27th following accusations of "abuse of office to benefit donor Nate Paul, himself and Paxton’s alleged mistress. That led to an ongoing FBI probe and multimillion-dollar whistleblower lawsuit, with some of those Paxton staffers claiming they were fired for speaking out," ABC News' Olivia Osteen noted in June.

Paxton has also been under federal criminal indictment since July 2015 for securities fraud. Now, the Austin American-Statesman explains, Paxton and Paul "set up an Uber account under a fake name that Paxton used to see his mistress, revealing the extent of the men's relationship as the FBI targeted Paul for possible mortgage fraud, a new filing in Paxton's upcoming impeachment trial contends."

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Paxton, the correspondents continue, "used the account — under the name 'Dave P,' which was jointly accessed by both men — to travel to the Pearl Lantana Apartments in Southwest Austin more than a dozen times between August and October 2020 to visit the woman, according to the filing from House impeachment lawyers."

They add that "Paxton and Paul met about 20 to 24 times in the spring and summer of 2020 — and one late night that fall — and discussed ways the state's top lawyer could help Paul as the FBI stepped up its investigation into the real estate investor. A federal indictment alleges that Paul overstated his wealth and understated his liabilities in order to obtain up to $172 million in loans."

The filing, per the Austin American-Statesman, states that Paxton 'morphed the Office of the Attorney General into Paul's concierge law firm.'

Paxton and his attorney Tony Buzbee deny any wrongdoing and said that the bribery charges were "slanderous" and "meritless."

Nonetheless, according to the paper, "the alleged assistance from Paul adds to what House impeachment managers say are 'bizarre ways' that Paxton helped Paul. Some of the allegations in the new filing have been previously reported, including that Paul also paid for a renovation to Paxton's Tarrytown home and provided a job for his mistress, a one-time Capitol staffer named Laura Olson."

The outlet notes that "the new filing contends that the public was unaware of the depth of Paxton's behavior because his 'denials, half-truths and downright lies enabled him to conceal the truth from the public.' It says Paxton relied upon 'burner phones and secret personal email accounts' and 'frequently ditched his security detail so he could meet up with Paul and others.'"

Moreover, the Statesman adds, "The documents also provide greater detail about allegations against Paxton and Paul that have been public for years. During a legal dispute between Paul and a local nonprofit, the Mitte Foundation, Paxton's aides were puzzled when he appeared to take Paul's side by pushing for a lowball settlement. Paxton’s office, according to state law, is required to protect a nonprofit in litigation. Paxton, the filing states, announced he would personally argue a motion in court — an extraordinary move for the state's top lawyer, who usually leaves such responsibilities to rank-and-file attorneys in his office."

Plohetski’s, Autullo’s, and Gore’s full report is available at this link.

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