Civil rights leader Jesse Jackson is calling for the Justice Department to investigate the sentencing of an Indian American investment banker, reports The Hill.
The Northern District Court of Illinois sentenced Nikesh Patel to a sentence of 25 years in prison in 2018 for the sale of $179 million in fraudulent loans. That was two and a half times longer than the sentence received by his White business partner who prosecutors described as more or less equal in the crime, according to Jackson’s Rainbow/PUSH Coalition.
Timothy Fisher accepted a plea offer of a maximum 10-year sentence. He has since been released after two years through the compassionate release program because he has asthma.
According to the American Bazaar, Patel’s parents approached Jackson expressing concern that racism and discrimination played a role in the disparate sentence.
“Here is another case where a family can be saved, and [Patel] can be a valuable asset to the community,” Jackson stated. “Tough times do not last but tough people do. Let’s work together to seek justice for Nikesh and the millions of those incarcerated along with their families.”
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Patels parents say their son helped the government recover $86 million and would recover more after his release. They also say he too suffers from asthma.
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