More than three years after a Gujarat family of four tragically froze to death while attempting to cross the US-Canada border, Harshkumar Ramanlal Patel, the alleged ringleader of the international human smuggling operation, has been sentenced to 10 years in prison. Patel, an Indian national known by the alias "Dirty Harry," was sentenced in Minnesota on Wednesday.
The case dates back to January 19, 2022, when the bodies of Jagdish Patel, 39, his wife Vaishaliben, in her mid-30s, their 11-year-old daughter, Vihangi, and 3-year-old son, Dharmik, were discovered by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police just north of the border between Manitoba and Minnesota. The family, originally from Dingucha, a village in Gujarat, India, perished due to exposure to the harsh winter conditions. A nearby weather station recorded a wind chill of -36 degrees Fahrenheit (-38 degrees Celsius) that morning.
Alongside Patel, Steve Anthony Shand, a U.S. citizen from Florida who was meant to pick up the migrants, was also sentenced. Prosecutors had sought nearly 20 years for Patel and approximately 11 years for Shand. U.S. District Judge John Tunheim, who presided over the case, had previously rejected attempts to overturn the guilty verdicts, stating, "This was not a close case."
During the trial, prosecutors presented evidence that Patel and Shand were part of a sophisticated operation that brought individuals from India to Canada on student visas and then smuggled them across the U.S. border. The victims, inadequately dressed for the extreme weather, were among a group attempting to cross on foot. The father, Jagdish Patel, tragically died trying to shield his son's face from the blizzard with a frozen glove, while Vaishaliben was found slumped against a chain-link fence. Seven members of the group survived, but one woman required hospitalization for severe frostbite and hypothermia. Another survivor testified that he had never seen snow before arriving in Canada, highlighting the migrants' vulnerability and lack of preparation for the perilous journey.
Prosecutors argued that Patel showed no remorse for his actions, continuing to deny his involvement despite substantial evidence to the contrary. They requested a sentence of nearly 20 years, emphasizing Patel's greed in exploiting the migrants' desire for a better life. In contrast, Patel's defense attorneys maintained his innocence, portraying him as a "low man on the totem pole" and requesting a sentence of time served. They have sought a government-paid attorney for his planned appeal, citing his lack of income and assets since his arrest in Chicago in February 2024.
Shand's attorney requested a more lenient sentence of 27 months, arguing that his client's role was limited to that of a taxi driver seeking to support his family. He claimed Shand was an outsider to the conspiracy and did not reap significant financial benefits. However, prosecutors highlighted Shand's focus on profit, even as the family wandered in the blizzard, and his initial denial to border patrol agents that others were out in the snow.
Judge Tunheim stated, "The crime in many respects is extraordinary because it did result in the unimaginable death of four individuals, including two children... These were deaths that were clearly avoidable."
