Small Law Firms

High-Flying Lawyer Used Private Plane To Smuggle Drugs Say Feds

Consider this another installment in "JD Advantage: Alternative Careers You Can Pursue With Your Degree."

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The dream of many lawyers is to own their own plane and never worry about a deposition running late ever again. Federal prosecutors believe 33-year-old New York attorney Manish Patel used his personal Learjet for more creative purposes than getting out of town without having to share an armrest with boorish retirees.

They claim he used the plane to smuggle drugs.

Manish Patel, an attorney licensed in New York and New Jersey, is named in a criminal complaint unsealed Thursday morning in federal court and is due to make his initial appearance in court Thursday afternoon.

Patel, who already is in custody on charges filed earlier by El Dorado County District Attorney Vern Pierson, is accused in court documents of flying marijuana and cannabis oil into California and other locales since at least August 2018, using a $345,000 Learjet he purchased mostly with cash.

Nothing’s ever fishy when someone buys a plane in cash. As the passage above notes, Patel was already in trouble with local authorities after they raided an office he’d rented earlier this year:

The owner of this building said on May 1, new tenants began leasing this 4,000 square foot suite, saying they were starting a new fabrication business.

Just weeks later, a business owner next door says he saw police activity at the new business. The building’s owner says neighboring tenants began complaining about a foul smell coming from inside the building and contacted the sheriff’s department.

That patchouli oil will get you every time.

Feds say East Coast lawyer used his Learjet to ship pot, hash oil across the country [Sacramento Bee]
New York Attorney Accused Of Running Drug Operation In El Dorado County [CBS13]

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