Hema Patel Sentenced to Three Years Imprisonment for Smuggling Indian Illegals into the US
July 17, 2019 - Bail bondswoman and hotel owner Hema Patel (51) from McAllen, TX was sentenced today to three years of imprisonment for smuggling illegal aliens from India in Central Islip, NY federal court.
Besides the three year imprisonment, Hema Patel was ordered by the court to forfeit her:
- Texas residence
- Two hotels
- $7.2 million in bail bonds
- $400,000 in cash
- 11 gold bars
From April 2015 through October 2016, Patel and her co-conspirators executed a scheme to bring undocumented aliens, primarily from India, into the United States in exchange for “fees” ranging from approximately $28,000 to $60,000 per person. Patel and her co-conspirators paid middlemen, or “coyotes,” to arrange the logistics of the aliens’ travel, either a northern route through Canada, or a southern route through Mexico. When the aliens were stopped and taken into custody by law enforcement officers at the U.S. border, they called Patel. Patel then prepared fraudulent bond documents on their behalf, including documents listing fictitious names and addresses indicating where and with whom the aliens would reside while their cases were pending. These documents and the bail bonds were then filed in United States Immigration Courts, and the aliens were released into the community. Patel used two of her hotels in Texas to temporarily harbor some of the aliens.Hema Patel's co-defendant Chandresh Kumar Patel of Queens, NYC pleaded guilty to smuggling aliens for financial gain for his role in the scheme as an alien trafficker and financial broker.
Chandresh Kumar Patel was sentenced to three years imprisonment on October 5, 2018.