Indian, US man convicted for ‘brutal’ deaths of family on US-Canada border in 2022
A man allegedly involved in the operation admitted to making over $400,000 from smuggling more than 500 people into the United States.
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A jury in Minnesota, United States, has convicted Harshkumar Ramanlal Patel, 29, and Steve Shand, 50, for their roles in a human trafficking operation that led to the deaths of an Indian family of four near the US-Canada border in 2022, reported The Indian Express.
The family froze to death during a blizzard.
Patel, who goes by the alias “Dirty Harry”, and Shand, a resident of Florida, were found guilty on Friday of four charges including conspiracy to smuggle migrants into the US.
Prosecutors described their operation as part of a growing international network trafficking migrants from India.
“This trial exposed the unthinkable cruelty of human smuggling, where profit is valued over humanity,” Minnesota US Attorney Andy Luger said. “A father, mother and two children lost their lives in sub-zero temperatures because of this greed.”
The family members were Jagdish Patel, 39; his wife Vaishaliben, who was said to have been in her mid-30s; and their two children, 11-year-old Vihangi and three-year-old Dharmik. They were found frozen to death on January 19, 2022, near Emerson in Canada’s Manitoba province.
Originally from Dingucha village in Gujarat’s Gandhinagar district, the family was attempting to enter the US illegally and had reportedly paid smugglers to guide them.
Patel coordinated the operation while Shand acted as a driver, according to the...
