A Gujarati man accused of murdering his wife in Maryland in 2015 remains at large and has now been placed on the FBI’s Ten Most Wanted Fugitives list.
Bhadreshkumar Chetanbhai Patel, now 34, allegedly killed his 21-year-old wife, Palak Patel, by striking her multiple times with an object while the two were working a night shift at a donut shop in Hanover, Maryland, on April 12, 2015.
CCTV footage showed the couple walking into the kitchen area and disappearing from view. When a customer received no response to his order, he became suspicious and eventually discovered Palak’s body, prompting him to alert the police.
Investigators say the couple’s visas had expired just a month before the murder, and Palak had expressed a desire to return to India—a move Patel reportedly opposed.
"The best guess is that he didn’t want her to leave," said FBI Special Agent Jonathan Shaffer. "It’s possible he feared disgrace if she returned to India."
A federal arrest warrant was issued for Patel eight days after the murder, charging him with first-degree murder, second-degree murder, first-degree assault, second-degree assault, and possession of a dangerous weapon with intent to injure.
Police Chief Amal E. Awad noted that Palak worked seven days a week to support herself in the U.S. and provide for her family back in India.
“Her unprovoked murder has left us with so many unanswered questions,” Awad said.
Since the crime, Patel has managed to evade law enforcement. His last confirmed location was in the Newark, New Jersey area.
Authorities believe he may have fled to Canada and possibly made his way back to India. In 2017, the FBI speculated that he could be hiding with distant relatives in the U.S.
That same year, Patel was officially added to the FBI’s Ten Most Wanted Fugitives list. His reward was initially set at $100,000 but has since been increased to $250,000. The FBI has warned that Patel is considered "armed and extremely dangerous."
Marking nearly a decade since the murder, federal agents and local police renewed calls for public assistance.
“We urge the community to help us locate Bhadreshkumar Patel and to share this message widely across social media,” said Chief Awad. “As long as he remains free and continues to evade justice, no intimate partner connected to this man is safe.”
