Overview
- Ten defendants were arrested across Massachusetts, Kentucky, Missouri and Ohio, with initial court appearances held in multiple districts and several released after hearings.
- Charging documents describe a script in which a paid “robber” brandished an apparent firearm, took cash on camera and left as clerks waited minutes before calling police.
- An eleventh defendant was previously deported to India, and many of those charged are described in filings as unlawfully present in the United States.
- Prosecutors say the alleged organizer, Rambhai Patel, and a getaway driver were earlier convicted in a related scheme, with Patel later sentenced to roughly 20 months.
- Each defendant faces one count of conspiracy to commit visa fraud carrying up to five years in prison and a $250,000 fine, with the FBI, USCIS and ICE assisting the Massachusetts U.S. Attorney’s Office in an ongoing case where all remain presumed innocent.