NEWARK, N.J. – He used commercial flights to smuggle in foreign nationals. Now he’ll serve 12 months and 1 day in prison for it, New Jersey U.S. Attorney Craig Carpenito said.
Bhavin Patel, 39, of India, was sentenced Tuesday by U.S. District Judge John M. Vazquez. In addition to prison time, Patel must serve one year of supervised release.
Patel operated a smuggling ring that brought foreign nationals into the United States in exchange for fees. The foreign nationals would fly out of Thailand to the United States. Undercover federal agents had been watching Patel since 2013—some posing as smugglers—and was finally arrested on Dec. 7, 2018 at Newark Liberty International Airport.
