India, July 30 -- A US federal court sentenced an Indian national to one day in prison, a USD 1,000 fine and ordered his removal from the country after he pleaded guilty to visa fraud and staging armed robberies.

Mitul Patel, 40, a resident of Worcester, Massachusetts, was sentenced by a US District Court judge in Boston on Wednesday in connection with a conspiracy to conduct staged armed robberies of convenience stores.

The purpose was to allow store clerks to falsely claim they were crime victims on immigration applications.

Patel, along with 10 others involved in the scheme, pleaded guilty in June 2026.

According to the charging documents, beginning in March 2023, Rambhai Patel and his co-conspirators set up and carried out staged ...