Federal authorities have charged 11 Indian nationals for allegedly taking part in a scheme in which armed robberies were staged at stores and restaurants so participants could falsely present themselves as victims of violent crime while seeking immigration benefits.
According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Massachusetts, 10 defendants were arrested in Massachusetts, Kentucky, Missouri and Ohio. An 11th defendant, Dipikaben Patel, 40, was also charged. Prosecutors said she had previously been deported to India after unlawfully residing in Weymouth, Massachusetts.
Prosecutors say the scheme was meant to help participants submit false applications for U non-immigrant status, or U Visas, by claiming they had been victims of violent crime. A U Visa is available to certain crime victims who have suffered mental or physical abuse and have been helpful to law enforcement in the investigation or prosecution of criminal activity.
Charging documents say the scheme began in March 2023, when Rameshbhai Patel and others allegedly arranged staged armed robberies at at least six convenience stores, liquor stores and fast food restaurants in Massachusetts and at other locations outside the state.
According to investigators, in the staged robberies, a man posing as a robber would threaten store clerks or owners with what appeared to be a gun, take cash from the register and run off while the encounter was recorded on surveillance video. Prosecutors said the clerks or owners then waited at least five minutes before calling police.
Investigators say participants paid to join the scheme, while store owners were also paid to let their businesses be used for the staged robberies. The alleged robber and getaway driver had already been charged and convicted. The 11 people now charged in the case are accused of helping arrange the robberies or paying for themselves or relatives to take part as claimed victims.
Six of the defendants were arrested in Massachusetts and released after initial appearances in federal court in Boston. The others arrested outside Massachusetts are expected to appear in federal court in Boston at a later date.
All 11 defendants are charged with conspiracy to commit visa fraud. Prosecutors said the charge carries a maximum sentence of five years in prison, three years of supervised release and a fine of up to $250,000.
The accusations are laid out in charging documents, and the defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty in court.
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