A couple formerly united in matrimony, Nikesh Ajay Patel and Trisha Patel, have received federal sentences for their roles in a series of fraud schemes amounting to millions of dollars. As reported by the U.S. Attorney’s Office, Nikesh, 40, once a resident of Windermere, has been handed a 27-year federal prison sentence by U.S. District Judge Paul G. Byron. This sentence will be served consecutively to a prior 25-year term from the Northern District of Illinois. His ex-wife, Trisha, 41, from Orlando, has been sentenced to 51 months in federal prison on September 18.
The schemes that led to their downfall started with Ajay Patel being charged in 2014 for a $179 million fraud routine. When he was out on federal pretrial release, he claimed he was aiding authorities and utilizing his business acumen to recoup funds for the victims. In stark contrast to his claims, he orchestrated a new $19 million fraud against the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), for which both Patels have been ordered to pay restitution to the USDA and other financial institutions, the U.S. Attorney’s Office detailed. Before Ajay Patel could flee to Ecuador on a private jet on January 6, 2018, to escape the hands of justice, the FBI apprehended him at the Kissimmee airport.
Following his arrest, a federal grand jury indicted Nikesh Patel on December 18, 2019, for stealing $19 million while on federal pretrial release. On February 28, 2023, he pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud, three counts of wire fraud, one count of conspiracy to commit money laundering, and eight counts of money laundering. He defrauded the USDA's Business and Industry Guaranteed Loan Program using falsified loan documents and a fictitious identity. The defrauded funds from these guaranteed loans, amounting to over $19 million, were sold to the Federal Agricultural Mortgage Corporation, with the FBI later recovering over $11 million, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office report.
While in federal custody, Nikesh Patel and his then-wife Trisha continued their fraudulent schemes. They posed as representatives of a pump manufacturer from Houston, Texas, seeking to expand in rural Puerto Rico. Together, they used a fake lender to secure an $8.54 million loan, with the USDA guaranteeing 80%. The false guarantees were sold to financial institutions for $7.4 million. However, the FBI only recovered $74,545 and a 2022 BMW, leaving a large debt to the USDA and other financial institutions.
