Ema Alice: On Wednesday, the U.S. Department of Justice said an Indian national living in the U.S. on a student visa was sentenced on a charge of conspiracy to commit money laundering.
According to the DOJ, 20-year-old Kishan Rajeshkumar Patel, of Navsari, Gujarat, received a 63-month sentence for the charge. The justice department said Patel helped defraud elderly victims out of hundreds of thousands of dollars in cash and gold from July 2024 through August 2024.
“The conspiracy used various online phishing methods and impersonated U.S. government officials, while Patel fraudulently received the cash and gold from victims, conveying a portion to co-conspirators and keeping a percentage for his own benefit,” the DOJ said.
According to the justice department, an investigation determined the scheme defrauded at least 25 victims, with a total intended loss of at least $2,694,156.
The Granite Shoals Police Department arrested Patel on Aug. 24, 2024.
“This defendant took advantage of his visa status in our country and participated in an international fraud scheme,” said U.S. Attorney Justin Simmons for the Western District of Texas. “Patel defrauded vulnerable American citizens out of millions of dollars by impersonating government officials and preying on his victims’ fears of adverse government action. [This] sentence demonstrates the federal government’s commitment to prosecuting the perpetrators of such nefarious schemes and achieving justice for the victims.”
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