A multiagency investigation into a suspicious uptick in reported crimes uncovered an alleged visa fraud scheme that led to the arrest of several current and former law enforcement officers.
U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Louisiana Alexander Van Hook explained that an “unusual number of armed robberies” in small Louisiana communities sparked investigations. He noted that most of the listed victims were not from the area.
‘99.9% of law enforcement’s good.’
“The armed robberies never took place, and those listed in the applications were never victims of crime,” Van Hook stated during a Wednesday press conference.
The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services announced a 62-count indictment against a local business owner, Chandrakant Patel, and several current and former police officers: Oakdale Chief of Police Chad Doyle, Oakdale’s Ward 5 Marshal Michael Slaney, Forest Hill Chief of Police Glynn Dixon, and former Glenmora Chief of Police Tebo Onishea.
The indictment charged the defendants with bribery, conspiracy to commit visa fraud, and mail fraud after the men reportedly ran a “more than nine-and-a-half-year alleged scheme to author, facilitate, produce, and authenticate false police reports of purported armed robberies in the central Louisiana area.”
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Photo by Matthew J. Lee/The Boston Globe via Getty Images
Hundreds of foreign nationals used those alleged false police reports to apply for U visas, which are intended to protect crime victims who are willing to assist law enforcement in investigations or prosecutions.
The indictment claims that the foreign nationals contacted business owner Patel to request that they be labeled as armed robbery victims in police reports. Patel would then allegedly ask Doyle, Slaney, Dixon, or Onishea to write up the false police reports so the immigrants could use them as official supporting documents in their visa applications.
Patel allegedly received thousands of dollars for his participation in the scheme. According to the indictment, he offered to pay a Rapides Parish Sheriff’s Office agent $5,000 in February for a fake police report.
Photo by Miami Herald via Getty Images
Rapides Parish Sheriff Mark Wood told WBRZ-TV, “99.9% of law enforcement’s good.”
“We go to work every day. We get up, we do what we’re supposed to do. For whatever reason, the allure of money, or whatever it is that leads them to do the wrong thing, don’t do it,” Wood stated.
The USCIS reported, “If convicted, the defendants each face a sentence of up to five years in prison on the conspiracy charge; up to 10 years on the visa fraud charges; and up to 20 years on the mail fraud charge. Patel faces up to 10 years on the bribery charge. In addition, they could be ordered to pay a fine of up to $250,000 on each count.”
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