Lawyer For Indian Diplomat Charged With Visa Fraud Asks Judge To Dismiss Case

NEW YORK (CBSNewYork/AP) -- A lawyer for an Indian diplomat who was indicted for alleged visa fraud last week and complied with an order to leave the United States has asked the trial judge to dismiss the case.

Attorney Daniel Arshack said in papers filed on Tuesday in Manhattan federal court charges and arrest warrants should be dismissed. He said Devyani Khobragade was protected by diplomatic immunity since she was charged last month.

Khobragade was indicted last Thursday on charges of visa fraud and making false statements. She is accused of lying on a visa application for her nanny and paying the woman only a fraction of what she had agreed to under U.S. law.

Her arrest triggered an outcry in India after it was revealed that she was strip-searched and thrown in a cell with other criminal defendants before being released on $250,000 bail.

Since Khobragade's arrest, the Indian government asked Washington to withdraw a diplomat from the U.S. Embassy in New Delhi. The United States has complied.

A spokesman for prosecutors has declined to comment.

Check Out These Other Stories From CBSNewYork.com:

(TM and © Copyright 2014 CBS Radio Inc. and its relevant subsidiaries. CBS RADIO and EYE Logo TM and Copyright 2014 CBS Broadcasting Inc. Used under license. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)