Washington:
A 26-year-old Indian national was put on its top 10 "Most Wanted List", by the FBI two years after he went missing after allegedly killing his wife inside the kitchen of a Dunkin Donuts restaurant in the US. The FBI offered up to USD 100,000 for any information that leads to the arrest of Bhadreshkumar Chetanbhai Patel.
The agency warned that Patel, who stabbed his 21-year-old wife Palak Bhadreskumar Patel multiple times with a large knife, should be considered armed and extremely dangerous. Palak was found beaten to death inside the restaurantkitchen in Hanover, Maryland on April 12, 2015. Both the husband and wife were Dunkin Donuts employees.
"The extremely violent nature of the crimes allegedly committed by Bhadreshkumar Patel earned him a place on the FBI's Top Ten List," Gordon B Johnson, the Special Agent inCharge of the FBI's Baltimore Field Office, said in astatement.
The valuable assistance of the public cannot be overstated, as shown by the ongoing success locating fugitives placed on the Top Ten list, the official said.
"The ongoing efforts of our investigators, coupled with the public's assistance, will lead to the capture of Bhadreshkumar Patel. We will never forget, and will not rest until he is located, captured and brought to justice."
A video released by the FBI shows both Bhadreshkumar andhis wife working on the day of her death, walking off screenbehind some racks in the kitchen together. He then re-emerges back on camera without his wife, turning off an oven andleaving the scene, The Capital Gazette reported. Bhadreshkumar's been charged with first- and second-degree murder, first- and second-degree assault, and a weaponsoffence in connection with her death.
A federal arrest warrant was issued a week after Palak'sdeath as Bhadreshkumar was charged with unlawful flight toavoid prosecution. Investigators said he was last seen taking a hotel shuttle to Newark Penn Station in New Jersey on April 13, 2015around 10 AM.
Police said Bhadreshkumar, originally from Kantrodi TaViramgam, Gujarat, India, had a visa to be in the US, but it had expired and there was no indication he was able to legally leave the country, the report said.
Investigators believe that Palak wanted to return toIndia, though her husband was against the idea. Patel has ties to New Jersey, Kentucky, Georgia, Illinois and India.
"Palak Patel was murdered in a depraved act of domestic violence," Anne Arundel County police Chief Tim Altomare said in a statement.
"Numerous and overwhelming efforts have been made inattempts to locate Bhadreshkumar and none of the efforts todate have been met with success," the official said.
"In cooperation with the FBI the Anne Arundel Countypolice believe we will certainly locate Bhadreshkumar and provide justice for Palak that her family desperately seeks inorder to find closure," the official added.
