Nicholas J. Ganjei United States Attorney for the Southern District of Texas | U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Texas
The second leader of a fraud scheme targeting elderly individuals has been sentenced to prison, according to an announcement by U.S. Attorney Nicholas J. Ganjei for the Southern District of Texas.
Hardik Jayantilal Patel, aged 37 and residing illegally in Lexington, Kentucky, pleaded guilty on December 1, 2023. Patel has been sentenced by U.S. District Judge Andrew S. Hanen to 46 months in federal prison, followed by three years of supervised release. He is also required to pay $3,203,478 in restitution to 85 victims. Judge Hanen highlighted the extensive harm caused by Patel and his conspirators. Patel, not a U.S. citizen, is likely to face removal proceedings after serving his sentence.
U.S. Attorney Ganjei stated, “We have an obligation to protect our seniors from the predations of scammers. SDTX will tirelessly pursue those that seek to profit by swindling the elderly.”
Between March and November 2019, Patel led a group of domestic money mules referred to as "runners." These individuals laundered money from telemarketing fraud schemes that originated from call centers in India. The fraud primarily targeted elderly victims.
The scammers falsely presented themselves as representatives of the U.S. government, leading victims to believe they were under investigation. Victims were instructed to clear their names by mailing cash. Patel's runners in the U.S. collected these cash packages and laundered the proceeds.
In 2019, at least three runners worked under Patel. He cooperated with Sohil Usmangani Vahora, who managed a separate team of four runners. Together, they coordinated laundering efforts across the country.
From 2019 to 2020, runners under Patel and Vahora collected hundreds of packages containing millions of dollars from victims in various states. Patel was the final individual to be sentenced in related cases in the Southern District of Texas.
Sohil Usmangani Vahora, aged 40 from Des Plaines, Illinois, received a prison sentence exceeding 15 years and was ordered to pay restitution of more than $3.5 million. Zaheen Malvi, aged 30 from Heber Springs, Arkansas, initially a runner, later assisted Vahora in managing others involved in the operation. Malvi was sentenced to 54 months and ordered to pay over $1.6 million in restitution.
Dhirenkumar Patel, aged 33 from Richmond, Kentucky, a runner for Patel, was sentenced to 18 months in prison and ordered to pay $225,221 in restitution. Three other runners received sentences ranging from 29 to 60 months. Apart from Vahora, a legal permanent resident, Patel and his other conspirators were unlawfully in the U.S. when the crimes were committed.
Hardik Jayantilal Patel will stay in custody until his transfer to a Federal Bureau of Prisons facility is finalized.
Various agencies, including the Social Security Administration’s Office of Inspector General, Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration, U.S. Postal Inspection Service, and Immigration and Customs Enforcement – Homeland Security Investigations, conducted the investigation. Support was provided by the FBI, Kentucky State Police, and police departments in Heber Springs, Arkansas, and Frankfort, Kentucky. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Stephanie Bauman and Kate Suh are prosecuting the case.
The Social Security Administration and its Office of Inspector General continue to warn the public against similar scams.
