Investigations
Former FAA Contractor Sentenced for Theft and Conversion of PIV Card
On August 5, 2021, the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Georgia sentenced former FAA contractor Hitesh Naginbhai Patel, of Loveland, Ohio, to 12 months of probation. On May 7, Patel pleaded guilty to theft and conversion of a personal identification verification (PIV) card. In May 2019, Patel informed a gate agent and a flight crew scheduled for a flight from Atlanta to Cincinnati that Patel was an FAA inspector and used a former FAA contractor’s PIV credential to support the claim. During the boarding process, Patel allegedly demanded to be allowed to exit the aircraft before anyone else upon arrival in order to facilitate FAA business. The investigation confirmed that Patel has never been an FAA inspector or employee. Patel once worked as an FAA contractor and was issued a legitimate PIV card in connection with that employment, which ended in September 2017. All PIV cards are Federal Government property and Patel should have returned the card to FAA upon completion of the contract work.
DOT-OIG conducted this investigation with assistance from FAA.