A US jury has indicted 10 Indian nationals in connection with a conspiracy to carry out staged armed robberies at convenience stores for the purpose of allowing store clerks to falsely claim they were crime victims on immigration applications, according to a statement on the US Justice Department’s website.

The defendants were previously charged by criminal complaint in March 2026, the statement said, adding that a federal grand jury in Boston charged the accused with one count of conspiracy to commit visa fraud.

It said all 10 defendants were previously charged by criminal complaint and released on conditions.

Among them, Rameshbhai Patel and Ronakkumar Patel had been taken into immigration custody, the statement said.

“The defendants are subject to deportation upon completion of any sentence imposed. This case stems from an investigation into Rambhai Patel, the organiser of the scheme, and getaway driver Balwinder Singh – both of whom were charged in December 2023 and later convicted in May 2025,” the statement read.

The statement cites the charging documents in March 2023 as stating that “Rambhai Patel and his co-conspirators set up and carried out staged armed robberies of at least six convenience/ liquor stores and fast food restaurants in Massachusetts and elsewhere. It is alleged that the purpose of the staged robberies was to allow the clerks present to falsely claim that they were victims of a violent crime on an application for U non-immigration status (U Visa)”.

The statement explained that a U Visa was available to victims of certain crimes who had suffered mental or physical abuse and who had been helpful to law enforcement in the investigation or prosecution of criminal activity.  

“In the course of the alleged staged robberies, the ’robber’ would allegedly threaten store clerks and/ or owners with an apparent firearm before taking cash from the register and fleeing, while the interaction was captured on store surveillance video.

“The clerks and/ or owners would then wait five or more minutes until the alleged ‘robber’ had escaped before calling police to report the ‘crime’. The ‘victims’ are alleged to have each paid Rambhai Patel to participate in the scheme. In turn, Rambhai Patel paid the store owners for the use of their stores for the staged robbery,” the statement read.

The 10 defendants indicted on Thursday by the Boston jury were “alleged to have either arranged with Rambhai Patel to set up each robbery, or paid for themselves or a family member to participate as a ‘victim’.”

“The charge of conspiracy to commit visa fraud provides for a sentence of up to five years in prison, three years of supervised release and a fine of $250,000. Additionally, the defendants are subject to deportation after any sentence imposed,” the statement said.