A South Carolina man recently arrested for multiple charges connected to the attempted scam of an elderly Jones County couple was in court last week seeking bond.
Bhargav G. Patel, 22, was arrested March 20 and charged with two counts of criminal attempt to commit a felony, elder abuse and exploitation. He has been held without bond since his arrest.
Patel was in Jones County Superior Court April 3 for a bond motion represented by Atlanta attorney Nathan Pugh. Assistant District Attorney Cara Fiore represented the state, and the case was heard by Superior Court Judge Stephen Bradley. Pugh told the court that Patel is not from Georgia and lives in Powdersville, S.C., with his parents and sister, who were in the courtroom. The attorney said his client is a student at USC and was willing to surrender his passport.
Pugh appeared to have a plan for Patel’s release. He said his client’s parents were prepared to move to Jones County for the duration of the case.
“Nathan is 22 and has no criminal history,” he said.
The defendant’s sister testified during the hearing that she had looked for apartments in Jones County and was ready to sign a lease.
Pugh said Patel’s family was very vested in making sure Nathan will do whatever is asked to secure his release.
“We request a reasonable bond,” he said.
Fiore said the state is opposed to bond. She said five other counties have contacted the Jones County Sheriff’s Office.
“He’s a suspect in scams that have occurred in Meriwether, Columbia, Douglas and Jasper counties,” she said. “He targets the elderly and is a risk to reoffend.”
The ADA spoke to the court about the scam attempt and that the victim was persuaded to hand Patel a box containing more than $40,000 in cash. The scam was stopped when a family member made it to the victim’s home in time to stop the hand off.
Family members of the Jones County victim testified before the court in opposition to the bond. “We object to his bond because of what he put our family through. We don’t want him to be able to walk around freely,” the witness said.
Pugh countered that his client was innocent until proven guilty. He said there was no probable cause given for the cases in any of the other counties. He suggested Patel could be placed under house arrest and ordered to have no access to a phone or computer.
Bradley said, while it was possible to make those limitations, they would be hard to enforce.
Another of Pugh’s arguments was his client is a vegetarian, and his food options were limited in the Jones County jail.
“He’s not eating or sleeping,” the attorney said.
The judge noted the family’s willingness to make concessions.
“They are taking efforts you almost never see,” the judge said.
Bradley went on to say bond was denied because Patel has no ties to Jones County. The judge also expressed concerns about the offender’s continued efforts to contact the victim.
Crime report
A report of the arrest by Jones County Sheriff’s Office Deputy Jared Marcum states he was dispatched to the victims’ residence in the southern part of the county the afternoon of March 11.
The caller reporting the scam attempt was the son of the victims, who arrived at his parents’ home just in time to stop the handover of thousands of dollars from their bank account.
Marcum said the husband had been convinced that the person he was talking to was investigating fraud at his financial institution. The victim withdrew all the money from his account in $100 bills and was prepared to hand the money to the party sent to pick it up.
The pick-up person fled the scene when the son arrived, and the son started taking pictures of the car and license plate. The son pursued the vehicle and attempted to stop it.
When the son returned to the home, he told Marcum and JCSO Sgt. Travis Walker about the pursuit, and the officers retraced the route. Marcum said they saw evidence of the vehicle losing control multiple times and looked for a crash site but were unsuccessful.
Jones County Sheriff Butch Reece said JCSO investigators were able to identify Patel as the driver of the vehicle and a resident of South Carolina. With the help of the Anderson County Sheriff’s Office there, Patel was taken into custody. He was extradited to Georgia and remains in custody at the Jones County Sheriff’s Office.
