Skip to main content
Press Release

Two Indian Nationals Arrested, Charged With Smuggling Foreign Nationals Into The United States Via Commercial Flights

For Immediate Release
U.S. Attorney's Office, District of New Jersey

NEWARK, N.J. – Two Indian nationals will appear in federal court today to face charges that they conspired to use commercial airline flights to smuggle foreign nationals into the United States, U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman announced.

Nileshkumar Patel, 41, and Harsad Mehta, 65, both of India, are charged by criminal complaint with one count of conspiracy to bring in and harbor aliens. In addition, Patel is charged with six counts and Mehta is charged with four counts of smuggling foreign nationals into the United States for private financial gain.

Both were arrested yesterday by special agents of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) upon their arrival at Newark Liberty International Airport and are expected to appear this afternoon before U.S. Magistrate Judge Cathy L. Waldor in Newark federal court.

According to the complaint:

HSI received information that a smuggling operation run by Patel and Mehta was attempting to find methods to illegally smuggle foreign nationals from India into the United States. The investigation revealed that the smuggling organization recruited Indian nationals and others to pay fees in exchange for passage to the United States.

Beginning in April 2014, an undercover law enforcement officer posing as a smuggler began meeting with Patel and Mehta in Bangkok, Thailand. Patel and Mehta stated that they were involved in the smuggling business and had multiple Indian nationals that they were looking to smuggle into the United States. Mehta and Patel agreed to transport the Indian nationals from India to Thailand, at which point the undercover law enforcement officer would presumably use contacts to smuggle them into the United States via commercial airline flights.  Patel and Mehta agreed to wire a $10,000 down payment for each individual to be smuggled into the United States and to pay a balance of tens of thousands of dollars for each individual once the foreign nationals arrived in the United States.

Over the ensuing months, Patel and Mehta arranged for six Indian nationals to be brought to Thailand for smuggling into the United States via Newark Liberty International Airport.

The conspiracy charge carries a maximum potential penalty of 10 years in prison. Each substantive charge of smuggling carries a maximum potential penalty of five years in prison.

The charges and allegations contained in the complaint are merely accusations, and the defendants are considered innocent unless and until proven guilty.

U.S. Attorney Fishman credited special agents of HSI, under the direction of Acting Special Agent in Charge Kevin Kelly in Newark, with the investigation leading to the charges.

The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Francisco J. Navarro of the U.S Attorney’s Office National Security Unit in Newark.

Updated February 4, 2016

Topic
National Security
Press Release Number: 15-381