A group of current or former Louisiana Police Chiefs and the operator of a Subway Sandwich Shop are accused of working together in a decade -long scheme to falsify police reports to help aliens intended for victims of crime or witnesses.
A federal large jury returned an indictment of 62 counts with two police chefs, a former police chief, a marshal and the restaurant operator on charges, including bribery, post fraud, money laundering, conspiracy and immigration fraud, a federal public prosecutor said Wednesday.
The regulation was aimed at obtaining you -Visa, so that foreigners can stay in the country without any official status in the US when they are victims of or witnesses of crimes, said American lawyer Alexander van Hook of the western district of Louisiana.
U -Visa are important to help law enforcement to solve things, said Van Hook. But the US limits the number of U -Visa that can be issued, and fraudulent requests can prevent legitimate victims of crimes or witnesses getting a visa.
The store operator is said to have paid $ 5,000 to officers to make false police reports that claim that dozens of people were the victim of crimes, Van Hook said. The collusion is said to take place from December 2015 to July 2025, said the office of the public prosecutor.
Chandrakant “Lala” Patel is said to have paid officers thousands of dollars to falsify police reports, a federal public prosecutor said. – Rapides Parish Sheriff's Office
The defendants and charges include:
– Subway Sandwich Store Operator Chandrakant “Lala” PatelVan Oakdale, Louisiana, who is accused of bribery, post fraud, money laundering and conspiracy to commit visa fraud
– Oakdale Police Chief Chad DoyleThis is accused of visa fraud, post fraud, money laundering and conspiracy to commit visa fraud
– Michael “Freck” SlaneyA Marshal in Oakdale accused of visa fraud, postal fraud, money laundering and conspiracy to commit visa fraud
– Police chief Glynn Dixon van Forest Hill, Louisiana, who is accused of visa fraud, post fraud, money laundering and conspiracy to commit visa fraud
– Tebo OnishaA former police chief of Glenmora, Louisiana, accused of visa fraud, post fraud and conspiracy to commit visa fraud
If they are convicted, the defendants each stand up to five years in prison in the conspiracy, up to 10 years on the charges of the visa fraud and up to 20 years in post -fraud. If convicted of bribery, Patel is confronted with a maximum of 10 years in prison.
“Moreover, they could be ordered to pay a fine of a maximum of $ 250,000 with every count,” said the office of the public prosecutor.
It is not immediately clear whether the defendants have legal representation or when they owe the court.
'The armed robberies have never taken place'
Authorities noted “a large number of armed robberies of people who did not come from Louisiana and in some of our smaller communities in Louisiana, and (defendants) claimed that those people were the victims of armed robberies,” said Van Hook.
“In fact, the armed robberies never took place. And those in the applications were never the victims of crime. Instead, these people would pay Mr Patel, who in turn would pay Doyle, Slaney, Dixon and Oneisha to create false police reports to the US government.”
Patel himself was granted a U-Vision in 2023 “based on his alleged status as a victim of armed robbery,” said a 21-page indictment submitted this month in the federal court.
The indictment also mentions the first initials and surnames of 24 alleged victims – all of whom have the surname Patel. It was not immediately clear whether one of those aliens is related to the operator of the Subway Store.
'There are hundreds of names'
Nearly 200 Law Enforcement Officers carried out 11 search conceptions on Tuesday as part of the research, said Homeland Security Investigations Special Agent in Charge Eric Delaune.
Two of the police chefs were arrested while attending a conference in Baton Rouge on Tuesday, said Delaune.
Van Hook said that it is possible that hundreds of visa applicants may be involved, and the research is not over.
“This is a very, very important matter. They are not two or three people. There are hundreds of names, and we will elaborate on it as the case relaxes before the court,” said the public prosecutor.
“When I say there are hundreds of names, those visas were approved.”
This story has been updated with additional information.
Caroll Alvarado from CNN, Jeremy Grisham and Devon Sayers have contributed to this report.
For more CNN news and newsletters create an account on CNN.com
