Trial Begins for Human Smuggling Case Linked to Family's Tragic Death

Two men stand accused of orchestrating a scheme that led to the freezing deaths of an Indian family at the Canada-U.S. border in 2022.

The trial of Steve Shand and Harshkumar Patel is underway in Fergus Falls, Minnesota, where they face charges related to a human smuggling operation.
The case involves the deaths of Jagdish Patel, his wife Vaishali, and their two children, who froze while attempting to cross the border in January 2022.
Witnesses have described the severe weather conditions, with wind chills reaching -30°C, on the night the family perished.
Shand and Patel are accused of being part of a smuggling ring that transported Indian nationals to Canada, instructing them to cross into the U.S. on foot.
Both defendants have pleaded not guilty, with Shand's defense claiming he was unaware of the smuggling activities and Patel's defense denying his involvement in the ring.