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Updated
NRI
Immigration worker convicted & faces 49 years in jail
Atlanta, April 14, 2009
Suresh Mehta
NRI Hasmukh Patel, 49, of McDonough, Georgia, a Business Interface
Representative for U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS)
and former USCIS Adjudication Officer has been convicted in connection
with an alleged immigration scheme- of conspiring to encourage
immigrants to enter the country illegally and accepting a bribe.
Prosecutors say:
- A witness testified he paid Patel, an immigration adjudicator
with the Department of Homeland Security, $100,000 to bring
his brother and sister-in-law into the U.S.
- The U.S. Consulate in Mumbai, India also testified that Hasmukh
Patel called the consulate to vouch for the visa application.
The sentenced date was set up on June 23 and he will face $1.175
million fine and up to 49 years in prison
NRI
couple face federal charges in connection with an alleged immigration
scheme.
TWO INDICTED IN VISA PROGRAM FRAUD
May 15, 2008
Federal Agency Worker & Wife Assisted Aliens in Obtaining
Visas and Shielding them from Detection
Atlanta, GA - HASMUKH C. PATEL, 52, a Business Interface Representative
for U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) and former
USCIS Adjudication Officer, and his wife, NITIGNA H. PATEL, 46,
both of McDonough, Georgia, were indicted by a federal grand jury
on May 13, 2008. The indictment, which was made public today, charges
both defendants with conspiracy to encourage and induce aliens to
enter and remain in the United States illegally. HASMUKH C. PATEL
is charged separately with one count of accepting money to perpetrate
a fraud on the United States and eight counts of exceeding his authorized
access to the Department of Homeland Security, Customs and Border
Protection computer network system, known as TECS.
United States Attorney David E. Nahmias said, “It is disturbing
when a federal employee with inside experience with the TECS system
is alleged to have used that knowledge and access for personal gain
and as part of criminal activity. The alleged criminal actions of
this federal official and his wife should not reflect upon the thousands
of federal employees who are honest and work hard to enforce our
immigration laws.”
Wayne H. Salzgaber, the Special Agent in Charge of the U.S. Department
of Homeland Security, Office of Inspector General's Special Investigations
Division said, “As a USCIS employee, Mr. Patel is entrusted
with the responsibility of protecting the integrity of the U.S.
Immigration System. Any alleged misconduct by someone in his position
that betrays this trust or undermines our immigration laws will
not be tolerated, but instead will be aggressively investigated.”
The indictment was handed up Tuesday, and federal agents arrested
Hasmukh Patel, 52, on Wednesday. The man entered a not guilty plea
at his arraignment and was granted bond by a U.S. magistrate judge.
Nitigna Patel, 46, was scheduled to be arraigned Thursday.
DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND
SECURITY EMPLOYEE CONVICTED OF
ALIEN HARBORING, TAKING A BRIBE, AND COMPUTER INTRUSION
Former Immigration Adjudicator with Citizenship and Immigration
Services
Convicted on 12 Counts
Atlanta, GA, May 13, 2008
Late this afternoon, a federal jury returned a guilty verdict against
HASMUKH PATEL, 54, of McDonough, Georgia, on a dozen counts related
to a fraud and bribery scheme and a conspiracy to encourage and
induce aliens to come to and reside in the United States. The jury
deliberated for a little over an hour.
United States Attorney David E. Nahmias said of today’s
jury verdict, “This defendant’s federal position gave
him the power to decide whether some foreigners could receive the
benefits of permanent residency and, ultimately, citizenship. He
abused his authority and knowledge of how visas are obtained to
bring in two foreign nationals in violation of the law. While the
great majority of federal employees are honest and hardworking,
any who violate the law and abuse their authority face federal prison.
This defendant’s greed and dishonesty have now put him on
prison’s doorstep.”
Wayne H. Salzgaber, Special Agent in Charge, Special Investigations
Division, Office of Inspector General (OIG), Department of Homeland
Security (DHS), said, “Hasmukh Patel's actions violated the
public trust and today's verdict holds him accountable for his conduct.
Our office will continue to vigorously pursue all allegations of
public corruption within the Department. Today's verdict is the
culmination of a collaborative investigation among DHS OIG, U.S.
State Department Diplomatic Security Service (DSS), U.S. Department
of Labor OIG and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).”
According to United States Attorney Nahmias and the information
presented in court: Witnesses testified that from March of 2005
through August 2007, PATEL took actions to bring a foreign national
couple to this country based on fraudulent work visas. PATEL was
found guilty of submitting fraudulent visa applications to the Department
of Labor and to the
Department of Homeland Security. As part of the scheme, a witness
testified, he paid PATEL $100,000 to bring his brother and sister-in-law
into the United States. PATEL had stated in the visa application
that the foreign national woman would work in his home, caring for
his wife, but she never did. Evidence at trial established that
the couple instead went to
Brunswick, Georgia, to work in the family convenience store. PATEL
wrote a series of checks to the visa recipient to make it appear
that the woman worked in his home, when she did not.
Witnesses from the United States Consulate in Mumbai, India, testified
that PATEL called the consulate to vouch for the veracity of the
visa application, informing a consular official he was employed
by the Department of Homeland Security, Citizenship and Immigration
Service. Consular officials later alerted investigators that the
defendant was attempting to bring in another couple on the same
type of temporary work visa. The evidence showed that PATEL also
accessed his DHS computer to see if he or a visa recipient were
under investigation.
PATEL was convicted on the conspiracy charge of encouraging aliens
to illegally reside in the United States, and on substantive counts
of taking a bribe in return for being influenced to commit a fraud
on the United States, encouraging and inducing two aliens to enter
and reside in the United States for his own private financial gain,
making false statements to the U.S. Department of Labor and the
Department of Homeland Security, and exceeding his authorized access
on his government computer. This trial lasted two weeks. PATEL could
receive a maximum sentence of 49 years in prison and a fine of up
to $1,750,000. In determining the actual sentence, the Court will
consider the United States Sentencing Guidelines, which are not
binding but provide appropriate sentencing ranges for most offenders.
Sentencing is scheduled for June 23, 2009 at 4:00 p.m. before United
States District Judge Clarence Cooper.
This case was investigated by Special Agents of the Department
of Homeland Security, Office of the Inspector General and Immigration
and Customs Enforcement, United States Department of State, Diplomatic
Security Service, and Department of Labor, Office of Inspector General.
Assistant United States Attorneys Susan Coppedge and William McKinnon
are prosecuting the case.
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