Ken Paxton, the Texas attorney general, celebrated New Year’s Eve in 2024 with two fugitives wanted on federal fraud charges, according to a lawsuit and video from the party. One of the fugitives has donated tens of thousands of dollars to Mr. Paxton’s political campaigns.
Mr. Paxton, who is currently locked in a fierce fight for a U.S. Senate seat, was videotaped celebrating in Dubai with Anosh Ahmed and Sameer Suhail, according to a lawsuit from late 2025. Six months before the party, the U.S. Department of Justice had announced federal fraud charges against Mr. Ahmed and Mr. Suhail, saying they had embezzled millions from a nonprofit hospital in Chicago.
The video, which was first published by The Wall Street Journal, showed Mr. Paxton, Mr. Suhail and Tracy Duhon, who was reported to be Mr. Paxton’s girlfriend, at a party watching fireworks over the Burj Khalifa, the world’s tallest building. The New York Times obtained a copy of the video and confirmed its veracity.
It is unclear why Mr. Paxton attended the Dubai party or what the extent of his ties to Mr. Ahmed and Mr. Suhail is. Mr. Paxton’s campaign did not respond to questions about the trip, including who paid for his travel.
Mr. Ahmed has been a consistent donor to Mr. Paxton’s campaigns, having contributed at least $190,000 since 2022. His last donation to Mr. Paxton, of $25,000, was received within days of the announcement of Mr. Ahmed’s indictment in 2024.
The Dubai video has intensified scrutiny of Mr. Paxton, who has faced repeated questions about his growing wealth, overseas travel and extramarital affairs during his 23 years as a public official. In the past decade, Mr. Paxton has faced multiple investigations over corruption allegations, none of which led to a conviction. He has denied all wrongdoing.
James Talarico, the Democrat running for Senate, has made Mr. Paxton’s history of scandal a centerpiece of his campaign. His campaign declined to comment.
The video was filed as part of the Texas case that accused Mr. Ahmed and others of defrauding investors out of millions of dollars in real estate projects in Dubai that never came to fruition, in what the plaintiffs called a “Ponzi scheme.” The investors said in the complaint that a defendant in that case had exhibited a “high-flying lifestyle,” including a Ferrari, expensive watches and other luxury items, but now claims to be broke.
“Only months earlier, he was celebrating New Year’s Eve in Dubai with Anosh Ahmed, his co-conspirator Sameer Suhail, and Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton,” said the complaint, which was filed in October 2025.
Mr. Suhail is not a party to the lawsuit in Texas.
Mr. Ahmed’s lawyers in the federal case did not respond to requests for comment. Adam Sheppard, Mr. Suhail’s lawyer, confirmed his client was at the Dubai party, saying the video was real, but declined to answer questions about why and how Mr. Paxton was there.
Mr. Ahmed has deep ties to Texas. He started multiple businesses in Texas, public records show, and owned a property now worth more than $16 million in Houston before he sold it ahead of his indictment.
The home is currently owned by Tony Buzbee, a prominent Houston lawyer who successfully defended Mr. Paxton against impeachment in 2023. Mr. Buzbee told The Times that he does not know Mr. Ahmed and that he was not aware of his ties to Mr. Paxton. He said he planned to demolish the house, which is the second property Mr. Buzbee owns on the same street, to build a pool and pool house.
Mr. Paxton’s campaign did not answer questions about his ties to Mr. Ahmed or whether he had invested or promoted the Dubai investments that are currently being litigated in state court.
In the federal case, Mr. Ahmed and Mr. Suhail face multiple counts of wire fraud and embezzlement. Mr. Ahmed was the chief financial officer at the Chicago hospital that the Justice Department said he embezzled money from, and Mr. Suhail operated medical supply companies.
Mr. Ahmed later faced additional fraud charges for what the Justice Department called a “$894 million fraudulent Covid-19 testing scheme.” In this case, Mr. Ahmed was accused of obtaining patient information, which he used to submit false testing claims to labs in Illinois and Texas. He was charged with receiving kickbacks, money laundering and other alleged crimes.
At the time of the Dubai party, both Mr. Ahmed and Mr. Suhail were on the Justice Department’s fugitive list, according to the U.S. attorney’s office in Chicago. After his time in Dubai, Mr. Ahmed fled to Serbia, the Justice Department said, where he was arrested.
This week, Mr. Ahmed and Mr. Suhail were in federal court in Chicago to plead not guilty to their fraud charges. When asked to comment further on ties to Mr. Paxton, Mr. Sheppard, Mr. Suhail’s lawyer, declined to elaborate.
“Dr. Suhail has longstanding personal and professional relationships with people with diverse backgrounds including prominent business and political figures,” Mr. Sheppard said.
Kim Bellware contributed to reporting.
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