Amitkumar Kanubhai Patel, International Parental Kidnapping, New Jersey 2020

CAMDEN, N.J. – A New Jersey man who kidnapped his child and fled to India has been extradited to the United States to face charges of international parental kidnapping, federal authorities announced today.

Amitkumar Kanubhai Patel, 38, of Vadodara, India, formerly of Edison, New Jersey, was charged with one count of international parental kidnapping. A federal grand jury sitting in Camden returned the indictment on July 22, 2020. On Sept. 9, 2021, Patel was extradited from England.

According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court, Patel kidnapped his child in July 2017 and took him to India, where he has been living ever since. The child’s mother, a resident of Cherry Hill, New Jersey, had been granted sole custody of their child in a New Jersey court.

Patel, who was in a relationship with the child’s mother, had obtained sole custody of the child in a New Jersey court in May 2017. He then took the child to India, where he has been living ever since. The child’s mother obtained a court order in October 2018 ordering Patel to return the child to the United States, but he has refused to comply.

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

Acting U.S. Attorney Rachael A. Honig credited special agents of the FBI, under the direction of Acting Special Agent in Charge Bradley S. Benavides in Philadelphia, with the investigation leading to the indictment.

Patel made his initial court appearance and was arraigned today in Camden federal court. He was detained.

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