US citizen of India arrested for ‘kidnapping’ his own child

Patel, 38, was arrested in England, where he had come with his child.

He appeared in his initial court and was extradited Friday in a New Jersey court after he was extradited to face charges that he obstructed the parental rights of his child’s mother by abducting the child and Failed to return him to the United States when ordered to do so. He appeared by video-conference before US Magistrate Judge Karen M. William in Camden federal court and was taken into custody.

The international parental abduction count carries a maximum penalty of three years in prison and a maximum fine of $250,000.

According to the documents, the New Jersey-based mother of the child and Patel were in a relationship in New Jersey from August 2015 to July 2017. He never married. In November 2016, they had a baby boy. The names of the child and his mother were not released.

The mother said Patel wanted to take the child to India to meet Patel’s parents and undergo a DNA test. Patel claimed that the DNA test was necessary for the child to claim Patel’s family assets in India. When the child was about four months old, Patel attempted to obtain an Indian visa for the child. The visa application was denied because Patel did not have documents documenting his rights of child custody.

According to court papers, Patel told the child’s mother that in order to obtain an Indian visa for the child, she would need to secure sole custody of her son, for which she would have to approach the court. Patel directed the child’s mother to tell the court that they have “mutual understanding” with regard to the custody of their child.

He instructed the mother to tell that she did not have a work permit, and since she was unemployed, and could not take care of her child.

On May 1, 2017, Patel went to New Jersey Superior Court, Chancery Division Family Court to get sole custody of the child. According to the child’s mother, most of the hearing took place in English, with no translator. The child’s mother spoke limited English at the time of hearing. The mother answered the court’s questions as she was instructed by Patel. He said that no lawyer represented him during the hearing.

The next day, the court recorded an order granting Patel sole legal custody of the minor child and allowing the mother to file for joint legal custody in future. Upon receiving a court order, Patel obtained visas to India for himself and the child through Quick Travel Inc. Patel told the child’s mother that the trip to India would be for two weeks. On July 26, 2017, Patel and the child traveled to India.

According to the child’s mother, she sent several messages to Patel requesting confirmation that the two had arrived in India safely and there was no response for several days. Patel eventually called the mother and said that he was never going to bring the child back to the United States.

The child’s mother sought legal advice, returned to New Jersey Superior Court, and on October 16, 2018, the court ordered Patel to return the child to the United States immediately. The Justice Department said records show Patel and the child have not returned to the United States since July 2017. PTI LKJ SMN SMN

This story has been published without modification in text from a wire agency feed. Only the title has been changed.