An Indian-American man from Canton, Michigan, pleaded guilty April 7, 2021, to one count of sexual exploitation of children, announced Acting United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Michigan Saima Mohsin. Shailesh Patel, 53, entered his guilty plea before United States District Judge George Caram Steeh.  A sentencing date has been set for July 20, 2021, the press release from the U.S. Attorney’s office said.
 
“The sexual assault of children and the production of child pornography are heinous crimes and those who prey upon our children and commit these acts of violence will be vigorously prosecuted and brought to justice,” Acting US Attorney Mohsin is quoted saying in the press release.

“The women, in this case, were sexually assaulted for years by Shailesh Patel,” said Wayne County Prosecutor Kym Worthy. “They were children when the abuse began, and they were courageous to come forward as adults to report this behavior to the authorities. For their sake we are pleased that we were able to reach a global resolution with our state case and the Federal case.”

As part of his plea, Patel agreed that in approximately 2010, on at least one occasion, he gave a 10-year-old child his cellular phone and instructed her to make a video producing a visual depiction that constituted child pornography.

Patel also pleaded guilty on March 19, 2021 in Wayne County Circuit Court to 15 to 35 years in prison for first-degree criminal sexual conduct charges, 9 to 15 years for two second-degree criminal sexual conduct charges, and probation for a fourth-degree criminal sexual conduct charge, conduct involving two minor female victims, one of which is the same victim in the federal case.  He is expected to be sentenced in the Wayne County Prosecutor’s Office case on May 28, 2021.

The case was the result of a joint investigation by the Canton Police Department and the Southeast Michigan Trafficking and Exploitation Crimes Task Force (“SEMTEC”) of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, as well as a cooperative effort between the Wayne County Prosecutor’s Office and the United States Attorney’s Office, the press release said.

(By arrangement with News India Times)