Indian Man Who Accused Officer of Brutality Deported

Apr 14, 2007
TRENTON, New Jersey (1010 WINS) -- An Edison man who filed a brutality complaint against a township police officer last year has been deported to his native India.

Rajnikant Parikh was sent home Thursday night, Immigrant and Customs Enforcement officials said. The deportation came nine months after Parikh accused officer Michael Dotro of using excessive force while he was being arrested last year.

The arrest came while Parikh was watching an illegal fireworks show on July 4, authorities said. He was accused of hitting Dotro and telling others in the crowd to do the same.

A month later, Parikh was arrested by ICE officials _ while he was holding a rally to protest police brutality _ after immigration officials found an outstanding order of deportation against him.

He continued to fight his charges after the arrests, but Edison authorities conducted internal reviews of both incidents and found that neither Dotro nor the department had committed any wrongdoing.

After being ordered to leave the country, Parikh left the country Thursday.

ICE officials said Parikh was taken into custody by the U.S. Border Patrol in 1995 in Texas, while he was using the name Amit Sheth. He was ordered deported the following year for his illegal entry into the country, but in 1999 he obtained a visa under his current name.

``This individual used two different identities over a 12-year-period in order to circumvent immigration law,'' ICE officials said in a statement released Friday. ``This case graphically points out the necessity of maintaining the integrity of the nation's immigration laws.''

Parikh's lawyer, Ravinder Bhalla, and other supporters said his deportation does not mean the battle is over, claiming the decision to make him leave was unfair.

Bhalla said Parikh may still file civil lawsuits against Edison, Dotro, and his brother Sam, an attorney who works for ICE.

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