A federal grand jury in Boston charged ten Indian nationals in connection with a scheme to fake armed robberies of convenience stores so that store workers could fraudulently claim they were crime victims on immigration applications. The defendants were originally charged on a criminal complaint in March 2026.
According to a press statement from the Massachusetts Department of Justice, a federal grand jury has indicted the following defendants on one count of conspiracy to commit visa fraud:
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1. Jitendrakumar Patel, 39, unlawfully residing in Marshfield, Mass.;
2. Maheshkumar Patel, 36, unlawfully residing in Randolph, Mass.;
3. Sanjaykumar Patel, 45, unlawfully residing in Quincy, Mass.;
4. Dipikaben Patel, 40, deported to India after unlawfully residing in Weymouth, Mass.;
5. Rameshbhai Patel, 52, unlawfully residing in Eubank, Ky.;
6. Amitabahen Patel, 43, unlawfully residing in Plainville, Mass.;
7. Ronakkumar Patel, 28, unlawfully residing in Maryland Heights, Miss.;
8. Sangitaben Patel, 36, unlawfully residing in Randolph, Mass.;
9. Minkesh Patel, 42, unlawfully residing in Perrysburg, Ohio; and
10. Sonal Patel, 42, unlawfully residing in Perrysburg, Ohio.
All ten suspects were previously charged with a criminal complaint and released under conditions. Rameshbhai Patel and Ronakkumar Patel have been placed into immigration custody. After serving any term, the defendants face deportation. This case originates from an inquiry into the scheme’s organizer, Rambhai Patel, and getaway driver Balwinder Singh, who were both indicted in December 2023 and convicted in May 2025.
According to the charge documents, in March 2023, Rambhai Patel and his co-conspirators staged armed robberies at at least six convenience/liquor stores and fast food restaurants in Massachusetts and other states. The staged thefts were allegedly designed to allow the clerks present to fraudulently claim that they were victims of a violent crime on an application for U nonimmigrant status (U Visa). A U Visa is offered to victims of certain crimes who have experienced mental or physical abuse and have assisted law authorities in the investigation or prosecution of criminal behavior.
During the claimed staged robberies, the “robber” allegedly threatened store clerks and/or owners with an apparent pistol before stealing cash from the register and fleeing, with the interaction captured on store surveillance footage. The clerks and/or owners would then wait five or more minutes for the supposed “robber” to flee before calling police to report the “crime.” The “victims” allegedly paid Rambhai Patel to engage in the scheme. In exchange, Rambhai Patel compensated the store owners for the use of their locations for the staged robbery.
The organizer, Rambhai Patel, the “robber,” and the getaway driver, Balwinder Singh, were convicted in May 2025. The ten defendants indicted today are accused of either arranging with Rambhai Patel to carry out each heist or paying for themselves or a family member to act as a “victim.”
The charge of conspiracy to commit visa fraud carries a punishment of up to five years in prison, three years of supervised release, and a $250,000 fine. In addition, the accused are liable to deportation following any sentence imposed.
United States Attorney Leah Foley and Ted Docks, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Boston Division, made the announcements. The U.S. Attorney’s Offices for the Eastern District of New York, the Western District of Washington, the Northern District of Ohio, the Eastern District of Missouri, and the Eastern District of Kentucky; the FBI’s New York, Seattle, Louisville, Cleveland, and St. Louis Field Offices; U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services; U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Enforcement and Removal Operations; Massachusetts S. Police departments. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Elianna J. Nuzum and Jessica L. Soto from the Criminal Division.
The details in the charge filings are allegations. The defendants are deemed innocent unless and until they are proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in court.
