Three years after a heartbreaking tragedy unfolded along the US-Canada border, the man convicted of planning a human smuggling operation that led to the deaths of four Indian migrants has been sentenced to 10 years in prison. Harshkumar Ramanlal Patel, an Indian national from Gujarat, was handed the sentence on Wednesday at a federal courthouse in Fergus Falls, Minnesota. He was found guilty last year of four counts related to an international smuggling scheme. Prosecutors said Patel played a key role in a criminal network that brought people from India to Canada, then attempted to sneak them into the United States across a remote and often dangerous stretch of land. The plan turned deadly in January 2022 when Jagdish Patel, 39; his wife, Vaishaliben; their 11-year-old daughter, Vihangi; and three-year-old son, Dharmik, all from the village of Dingucha in Gujarat, froze to death during a blizzard as they attempted to cross the border. The family’s bodies were found just north of the Minnesota-Manitoba border. US district judge John Tunheim, who presided over the case, called the tragedy “extraordinary” and “unimaginable,” AP quoted.“These were deaths that were clearly avoidable,” he said during sentencing. Federal prosecutors had pushed for a harsher sentence of nearly 20 years, citing Patel’s leadership role and the fatal consequences of his actions. Acting US attorney Lisa Kirkpatrick said the case was driven by Patel’s personal greed.“We should make no mistake, it was the defendant’s greed that set in motion the facts that bring us here today,” Kirkpatrick told the court. Patel, dressed in an orange prison uniform and shackled, did not speak during the hearing and showed no visible emotion as the sentence was delivered. He is expected to be deported to India after serving his term. The case also involved Steve Anthony Shand, a Florida man who was set to pick up the migrants after their crossing. Shand, who was also convicted, faced sentencing on the same day. According to prosecutors, Shand texted Patel during the night of the fatal journey, saying, “we not losing any money.” Court documents detailed the harsh conditions that claimed the family’s lives. With wind chill temperatures at -38°C, the father reportedly tried to shield his young son’s face from the blistering cold with a frozen glove. The mother died slumped against a chain-link fence she may have believed marked safety. Seven others in the group survived, though some suffered frostbite and hypothermia. One man said he had never seen snow before arriving in Canada. Patel’s defence insisted he was no more than a “low man on the totem pole” in the scheme and requested a sentence of time served, just 18 months. But the judge rejected the argument, noting there was overwhelming evidence linking Patel to the operation under the alias “Dirty Harry.” Despite his conviction, Patel continues to deny involvement in the smuggling ring and plans to appeal. His lawyers have applied for a publicly funded attorney, citing lack of income and assets. The tragedy has cast a long shadow over the village of Dingucha, where many residents have sought to migrate abroad. Local reports say the Patels were schoolteachers seeking a better life.“This was not a close case,” Judge Tunheim concluded in a previous ruling refusing to overturn the jury’s verdict. The sentencing closes a dark chapter in a story that has highlighted the risks migrants take, and the cost of those who exploit their hopes.
