TRAVIS COUNTY, Texas — A multi-year legal saga has finally ended for Texas real estate developer Nate Paul.

Paul was finally sentenced in his federal fraud case after he reached a plea deal in January. Paul pleaded guilty to one count of making false statements to a financial institution and had the rest of his charges dropped.

On Wednesday, a judge sentenced Paul to one day of custody, which was already served, four months of home confinement, five years of supervised release — along with a $1 million fine. Paul initially faced up to six months in prison.

Paul, a close associate of Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, faced several criminal charges of financial crimes in June 2023 before multiple wire fraud charges were later added.

The charges stemmed from years of investigating Paul regarding false statements made to secure loans in 2017 and 2018. At the time, investigators said Paul made false statements and reports to banks that loaned him more than $170 million.

Paul pleaded not guilty to the eight charges of falsifying documents, which carried a maximum penalty of up to 30 years in prison and a $1 million fine.

Forbes magazine featured Paul and his business in 2017 as a “Texas Tycoon,” who built his real estate empire across 17 states. The FBI then raided Paul’s Austin home and downtown Austin businesses two years after the feature.

Most notably, Paul was known for his involvement with Paxton after a 2020 whistleblower lawsuit accused him of helping Paul gain access to documents related to the FBI’s raid. When Paul had nine properties foreclosed upon in 2021, whistleblowers said Paxton ordered a written opinion at 2 a.m. saying the foreclosures had to be suspended under pandemic safety rules.

Whistleblowers said Paul donated $25,000 to Paxton’s campaign in return, which Paxton then used to remodel his home and employ his mistress. Paxton would later be impeached by the Texas House and acquitted by the Texas Senate on all 16 articles of impeachment.

In November 2024, a civil case forced Paul to serve 10 days in jail on criminal contempt charges.

Paul was sentenced in March 2023 after he was accused of defrauding an Austin-based nonprofit. However, Paul appealed the punishment, claiming there was not enough evidence to support his conviction.

The Texas Supreme Court eventually rejected a request to overturn the sentence.