FERGUS FALLS, Minn. (trfnews.i234.me) — Two men, Steve Shand and Harshkimar Patel, will appear in court on Thursday, Nov. 14, for a pretrial conference related to human smuggling charges. The case involves a smuggling network transporting Indian migrants across the U.S.-Canada border.
Court documents indicate that Patel and Shand, both Florida residents, coordinated the operation. Migrants were flown to Canada on fake student visas, walked across the Minnesota-Canada border, and were then bused to Chicago. Prosecutors allege Patel hired Shand to drive the migrants into the U.S.
Investigators found evidence linking the operation to a restaurant chain employing migrants at low wages. In January 2022, a winter storm revealed the tragedy when the Patel family—unrelated to Harshkimar—froze to death near Emerson, Manitoba. They were attempting to cross the border in subzero temperatures.
Shand was arrested near the border in a van awaiting migrants. Both defendants are charged with human smuggling and endangering lives. They have pleaded not guilty. The trial is set for Monday in Minnesota’s Fergus Falls district court.
I’m Chris Harper reporting for trfnews.i234.me.