Robbery for residency: How 11 Indians allegedly defrauded US authorities to claim U visas

Eleven Indian nationals person been charged successful the United States for allegedly taking portion successful a conspiracy to signifier equipped robberies truthful individuals could falsely assertion migration benefits.The charges were announced by the United States attorney’s bureau for the territory of Massachusetts connected Friday, which said the defendants “participated successful staged equipped robberies of convenience stores for the intent of allowing store clerks to falsely assertion they were transgression victims connected migration applications.”The alleged strategy began astir March 2023 wherever Rambhai Patel and his co-conspirators staged robberies astatine respective convenience stores, liquor shops and fast-food restaurants successful Massachusetts.

Investigators said the fake crimes were meant to enactment applications for a U visa, a US migration payment disposable to victims of definite crimes who person suffered maltreatment and person helped instrumentality enforcement successful investigations.Court documents said that during the staged incidents, the robber would endanger store clerks and owners with an evident firearm earlier taking currency from the registry and fleeing. The clerks oregon owners would past hold 5 oregon much minutes until the robber had escaped earlier calling constabulary to study the crime.

Prosecutors besides allege that those listed arsenic victims paid an organiser to instrumentality portion successful the scheme. “The ‘victims’ are alleged to person each paid Patel to enactment successful the scheme,” the charging documents say. In turn, the organiser allegedly paid store owners to let their premises to beryllium utilized for the staged robberies.Officials said the organiser, the idiosyncratic who carried retired the robberies and the getaway operator had already been charged and convicted earlier.The eleven defendants charged present are accused of either arranging the robberies with the organiser oregon paying to enactment themselves oregon connected behalf of household members.Six of the accused were arrested successful Massachusetts and appeared successful national tribunal successful Boston connected Friday. Others were arrested successful Kentucky, Missouri and Ohio and are expected to look successful national tribunal successful Boston later.The complaint of conspiracy to perpetrate visa fraud carries a imaginable condemnation of up to 5 years successful prison, 3 years of supervised merchandise and a good of up to $250,000.