'Most Wanted Fugitive': FBI Announces $2,50,000 Reward For Info On Indian Who Killed His Wife

FBI has announced a reward of $250,000 for any tip-off on Bhadreshkumar Chetanbhai Patel who was put on the 'Ten Most Wanted Fugitives List' in 2017 for murdering his wife.

Bhadreshkumar Chetanbhai Patel who was put on the 'Ten Most Wanted Fugitives List' for murdering his wife.

Source : X/@FBIMostWanted

The Federal Bureau of Investigation has announced to offer a reward of upto $250,000 for any tip off leading to the arrest of one of the Ten Most Wanted Fugitives, Bhadreshkumar Chetanbhai Patel alias Bhadreshkumar C. Patel. The 34-year-old Indian-origin man from Kantrodi Ta Viramgam, Gujarat, is wanted for allegedly killing his wife on April 12, 2015, while they were working at a donut shop in Hanover, Maryland, United States of America.

The #FBI offers a reward of up to $250,000 for info leading to the arrest of Ten Most Wanted Fugitive Bhadreshkumar Chetanbhai Patel, wanted for allegedly killing his wife while they were working at a donut shop in Hanover, Maryland, on April 12, 2015: https://t.co/tCZ0Fde7WQ pic.twitter.com/GGLK4dBLhA

— FBI Most Wanted (@FBIMostWanted) April 12, 2024

As per a local arrest warrant issued in the District Court of Maryland for Anne Arundel County dated April 13, 2015, Patel has been charged with first-degree murder, second degree murder, first degree assault, second degree assault, and dangerous weapon with intent to injure.

After he absconded, a federal arrest warrant was also issued in the United States District Court, District of Maryland, Baltimore, Maryland, on April 20, 2015, charging him with unlawful flight to avoid prosecution, as stated on FBI's website.

This is the CCTV footage which shows newlyweds Bhadreshkumar and Palak Patel for the last time as husband and wife, after which Patel murdered her wife.

How Bhadreshkumar Patel Murdered His Wife And Escaped

The newlyweds had moved from India to begin their marriage in the United States and had settled in Hanover, Maryland, where they each took jobs at a donut shop. On the day of the incident, the couple was working side-by-side on the night shift. Palak was on the phone speaking to a family member, telling that he wished to go home to India, but the pair's visas had expired.

The family was still on the line, when Palak and Bhadreshkumar walked to a back room, where she was stabbed by him over and over again.

As per a report published by FBI on their website back in 2015, Anne Arundel County Police Detective Kelly Harding stated that Palak died in a "very brutal and horrible way". Talking about the accused, she said that Patel is kind of person who just murdered his wife and walked away calmly the very next minute. 

After murdering his wife, Patel walked to his nearby apartment, changed his clothes, grabbed his passport and some cash and took a taxi to a hotel near the Newark Liberty International Airport. He checked into the hotel at around 3:00 am and around 10:00 the next day, he checked out of the hotel, booked a hotel shuttle to reach Newark Penn Station. At this point, the cops lost track of him and are since then in the search of a tip needed to track him down.