FERGUS FALLS, Minn. (trfnews.i234.me) — A jury in Fergus Falls, Minnesota, convicted two men of charges related to human smuggling. The operation led to the deaths of an Indian family who froze while trying to cross the U.S.-Canada border during a 2022 blizzard.
Harshkumar Ramanlal Patel and Steve Shand were part of a sophisticated illegal operation that brought Indians into the United States, prosecutors said. They were each convicted on four counts related to human smuggling, including conspiracy to bring migrants into the country illegally.
The men could face maximum sentences as long as 20 years for some charges. Federal prosecutors said Jagdish Patel and his family froze to death while trying to cross the border in a scheme organized by Harshkumar Patel and Shand.
Before the jury’s conviction, testimony was given from an alleged participant in the smuggling ring, a survivor of the journey across the northern border, border patrol agents, and forensic experts. Defense attorneys argued that Shand was unwittingly roped into the scheme by Patel, while Patel’s lawyers said their client had been misidentified.
Prosecutors said Patel coordinated the operation while Shand drove migrants across the border. Only seven out of 11 Indian migrants survived the foot crossing. Canadian authorities found two parents and their young children dead from the cold later that morning.
I’m Chris Harper reporting for trfnews.i234.me