Indian illegal in US gets 4-year jail for duping senior citizens of $3.2 million

An Indian national, Hardik Jayantilal Patel, was sentenced to 46 months in jail for defrauding US citizens, mostly the elderly, of $3.2 million (approximately Rs 26 crore).

Patel, 37, who was illegally staying in the US, orchestrated a network of domestic money mules, known as "runners", who laundered millions of dollars through telemarketing scam calls.

Patel and his team carried out the scams between March and November 2019, which originated from call centres in India.

Before Patel, his partner-in-crime, Sohil Usmangani Vahora, received more than 15 years in prison and was ordered to pay over $3.5 million in restitution. Patel was the last of the seven people, including Zaheen Malvi and Dhirenkumar Patel, who were found guilty of running the scam racket on the elderly.

THE MODUS OPERANDI OF PATEL'S SCAM GANG

The scammers, posing as US government officials, targeted US citizens, mostly senior citizens. The targets were told that they were under investigation and demanded cash payments to clear their names off the lists. Patel's runners would then collect the cash packages and launder the funds.

Patel, who illegally lived in the Lexington city of Kentucky, pleaded guilty in December 2023, the US Attorney’s Office said in a statement issued on Wednesday, April 23.

US District Judge Andrew S Hanen earlier this week sentenced Patel to serve 46 months in federal prison, which would be immediately followed by three years of supervised release. Patel will also pay a combined $3.2 million in restitution to 85 identified victims, according to the statement.

Patel, who is not a US citizen, is expected to face removal proceedings following the sentence. Removal proceedings in the US are conducted to determine if an alien is eligible to remain in the country.

SCAMMERS IMPERSONATED US GOVT OFFICIALS AND CLAIMED VICTIMS WERE UNDER INVESTIGATION

Scammers of Patel's group pretended to work for the US government and claimed the victims were under investigation. They claimed the only way to clear their name was to send cash by mail. His runners in the US would then pick up the packages and launder the cash.

At least three runners worked under Patel in 2019. He collaborated with his associate Vahora, who managed his own team of four runners. Together, they coordinated efforts to launder fraud proceeds.

Runners under both Patel and Vahora picked up hundreds of packages from the elderly between 2019 and 2020 nationwide. These packages contained millions of dollars in cash that victims in multiple states had sent.