Keyur Hirenbhai Patel, a citizen of India, was charged Thursday with illegally reentering the United States, according to U.S. Attorney Gretchen C.F. Shappert of the District of the Virgin Islands.
Patel made his initial appearances before U.S. District Judge Curtis Gomez. After preliminary and detention hearings on Friday, U.S. Magistrate Judge Ruth Miller ordered Patel detained.
The complaint alleges that Customs and Border Patrol officers encountered Patel at the Red Hook ferry dock in St Thomas. The officers conducted immigration inspections and determined that Patel was not in possession of any documentation which allowed him to be in or to enter the United States. The officers proceeded to detain him and transport him to the Cyril E. King Airport for further inspection.
According to court documents, record checks conducted by Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers revealed that Keyur Hirenbhai Patel previously had been ordered removed from the United States on October 29, 2018, and neither the Secretary of Homeland Security nor the Attorney General has expressly consented to his reapplying for admission.
This case is being investigated by Homeland Security Investigations and CBP Air and Marine, and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Adam Sleeper.
