A video published Monday by The Wall Street Journal appears to show Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton on a balcony in Dubai shortly after midnight on Jan. 1, 2025, alongside several people, including at least one man named in a federal indictment alleging a multimillion-dollar hospital fraud scheme.
Paxton is Texas’ Republican candidate running for U.S. Senate.
The Journal identified one of the men as Sameer Suhail. The video also reportedly shows Anosh Ahmed, according to WSJ Reporter Elizabeth Findell.
According to a federal indictment, Anosh Ahmed, Sameer Suhail and Heather Bergdahl, defrauded a Chicago hospital and were later named in a 41-count indictment in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois.
The indictment alleges the three participated in a scheme to defraud an unnamed Illinois hospital of more than $15 million through false vendor payments. The Chicago Tribune has identified the hospital as Loretto Hospital in Chicago.
Ahmed and Suhail made their first court appearance Tuesday, Oct. 13, 2026, and pleaded not guilty to charges including wire fraud, embezzlement and money laundering, according to The Chicago Tribune.
Campaign finance records published by Transparency USA show Ahmed donated $40,000 to Paxton’s campaign in 2022 and an additional $125,000 from 2023 onward. The records show a $25,000 donation on July 15, 2024, three days after the Justice Department says the defendants were indicted.
Paxton’s campaign for U.S. Senate did not respond to requests from KSAT for comment made by phone, email and text. KSAT also reached out to the Office of the Attorney General for a comment and have not heard back.
Paxton’s opponent, State Rep. James Talarico, released the following statement in response to the video: “A party with multiple fugitives and Ken Paxton is still the sketchiest guy in the room.”
