A former attorney from Southlake was sentenced Thursday to nine years in federal prison for defrauding small-business owners of more than $8 million through a scheme promising multimillion-dollar loans, federal prosecutors said.
William Thomas Engle, 68, was also ordered to pay $8,274,980 in restitution and forfeit a Jeep Wrangler and several pieces of jewelry, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Texas.
From 2020 to 2022, Engle told customers he could secure loans for their businesses if they first deposited money into what he called “Good Faith Accounts,” prosecutors said. He promised the deposits would remain secure and be returned regardless of whether the loans were funded.
Some customers transferred as much as $2 million to Engle, expecting the money to remain in those accounts. Engle sent them purported bank statements showing the deposits were secure, but evidence presented at trial showed the statements were fraudulent and that Engle transferred the money into his personal accounts, prosecutors said.
Engle used the money to buy a yacht, vehicles and jewelry, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office. The victims received neither the promised loans nor the return of their deposits. Engle instead offered false explanations for why the loans had not been funded, prosecutors said.
“William Engle built an elaborate scheme that preyed on small business owners seeking legitimate financial help,” U.S. Attorney Ryan Raybould said in a statement.
Engle was indicted in September 2025 on charges of wire fraud, conspiracy to commit wire fraud and transactional money laundering. His trial began in January, but he pleaded guilty to one count of wire fraud after two days of testimony from several victims.
U.S. District Judge Mark T. Pittman sentenced Engle to 108 months in prison. The FBI’s Fort Worth Resident Agency investigated the case.