Indian-origin businessman, 3 police chiefs charged with US visa fraud

An Indian-origin businessman and the police chiefs of three cities in the US have been charged with visa fraud, allegedly by exploiting a provision to help crime victims. A federal grand jury framed fraud and conspiracy charges against them and a marshal, acting federal prosecutor Alexander Van Hook, in Lafayette, Louisiana, said. In the US legal system, a grand jury is a citizen's panel that determines whether there is a prima facie case to bring charges.

The Indian-origin businessman identified as Chandrakant “Lala” Patel paid police in three cities in Louisiana state to create fraudulent armed robbery cases and list people he proposed as victims to enable them to claim visas meant for crime victims, officials said on Wednesday. Chandrakant Patel was the owner of two stores and the operator of a fast food restaurant. Court papers said officials traced $230,000 and property work $51,000 connected to Patel in this case. There have been several cases of Indian involvement in crime victim visa fraud.

Patel, who had himself received a visa meant for crime victims, paid the police officials $5,000 for each of the people he referred to them to make up crimes and show them as victims, according to court papers. Known as “U Visas”, they are meant to allow them to stay in the country to testify in the case. The documents list 25 people identified with the last name Patel and only initials as those who were listed as victims in the reports by police officials. Patel and the police officials knew that those individuals who claimed to be “cooperating victims” were “never victims of the crimes”, according to the charging document.

In a recent case, two Indian-origin men admitted in a Massachusetts federal court in May to faking armed robberies to enable store employees or owners to claim the U Visas. Officials said that Rambhai Patel and Balwinder Singh staged armed robberies of at least nine establishments – shops, liquor stores, and fast-food restaurants- across the US. They are awaiting sentencing. According to court papers in that case, a person posing as a “robber” would threaten the employees or owners of the businesses, brandishing a firearm, and rob them while the incident was being recorded. Those claiming to be “victims” would wait till the “robber” got away before calling the police. Those claiming to be victims paid Patel, in one case $20,000, to stage the robbery.