FLINT, MI - A former Flint liquor store employee will be deported and targeted for an "honor killing" in India if he pleads guilty to aiding a $1.3 million food stamp fraud scheme in Michigan, his attorney says.

In a motion filed in Flint U.S. District Court on Thursday, Jan. 4, attorney Kimberly W. Stout argues that Jatinder "Bobby" Singh, 31, did not fully understand the repercussions of pleading guilty to a charge of conspiracy to commit wire fraud at Paradise House of Liquor in Flint, asking a federal judge to allow Singh to withdraw his plea.

Singh pleaded guilty to aiding the food stamp scheme in April 2017 under the assumption he would be allowed to stay in the United States due to the "horrendous circumstances" he faced if he returned to India, the filing said.

Last month, however, an immigration court ruled otherwise, denying Singh asylum.

If the 31-year-old former Flint liquor store employee is forced to return to India, he will be killed by his wife's family, Stout asserted.

According to the filing, Singh fled to the United States from India in 2008 after being targeted by his wife's family for an "honor killing" - a murder meant to "avenge a sense of insult" for marrying outside of caste, the Guardian reports.

Because Singh's wife was of a different culture than him, the pair was not permitted by the family to marry, the court filing states, adding that when Singh proposed to the woman, she was beaten by her father and Singh was threatened with death.

Eventually, with the help of Singh's siblings, the couple ran away and married.

"Upon learning of the marriage, [the woman's] father declared his daughter deceased and placed an article in the news paper [sic]," the filing said. "Further, [the woman's] family has marked [Singh] for death as honor killings are still acceptable in parts of India."

The Indian government reports that since 2014, around 500 people - mostly women - have died in "honor killings" in the country, a number which some activists say is "vastly under-reported," according to an article in Reuters.

In 2008, the couple obtained United States visas and lived in New York City for nearly seven years before moving to Flint with their two children - ages 6 and 8 - for work in 2014, the filing said.

While working at the Paradise Liquor House on Fleming Road in Flint, Singh allowed his visa to expire and no longer has legal status in the United States, according to court records.

Alongside Lakhbir "Lucky" Chahal and Tony "Paco" Price, Singh pleaded guilty to a single charge of conspiracy to commit wire fraud before Flint U.S. District Judge Linda V. Parker in April 2017.

In July, Parker sentenced Chahal - the owner of both Liquor Plus and Paradise House and accused ringleader in the scheme - to spend between 3.5 and 4.5 years behind bars, while Price was put on probation for 1.75 to 2.25 years.

Singh has not yet been sentenced.

At both liquor stores, Chahal would pay customers 50 cents cash in exchange for each dollar of their food stamps benefits. He would also exchange benefits for and ineligible items such as cigarettes and alcohol, authorities said, claiming that Chahal then illegally used the food stamp benefits to purchase stock for the stores.

Singh worked for Chahal at Paradise Liquor from February to October 2015, according to court records.

While he worked there, Singh bought Bridge Cards from beneficiaries of the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, according to court documents.

Singh, at the direction of Chahal, also used the Bridge Cards to buy inventory for Paradise House of Liquor, investigators said.

Although court records say Singh owes $81,197 in restitution, Singh "did not personally profit from this scheme other than his paycheck and some groceries," Stout's motion states.

With no former criminal history, government guidelines recommend Singh spend four to 10 months behind bars, according to records.

Singh is currently free on a $10,000 unsecured bond. Sentencing is scheduled for Feb. 21.

A spokesperson for the U.S. Attorney's office could not immediately be reached for comment on Singh's request.

In November 2017, the Sixth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals blocked the deportation of a metro Detroit woman who faced an honor killing if she returned home to Jordan.