Alleged smugglers on trial after family freezes to death

The trial for Florida resident Steve Shand and Indian national Harshkumar Patel began on Monday in Minnesota, where the pair face several federal charges related to human smuggling. Shand and Patel risked people's lives for profit while illegally smuggling them across the northern U.S. border with Canada, federal prosecutors argued. Prosecutors believe that Patel ran the smuggling operation and recruited Shand as a driver on the U.S. side. Both have denied the charges, and they are presumed innocent until proven guilty, according to the U.S. Justice Department.

The case revolves around an Indian family of four who froze to death in January 2022 on the Canadian side of the U.S. border. A husband and wife with their 11-year-old daughter and a 3-year-old son became separated from a larger group while trying to cross the border during a snowstorm, according to a federal complaint against Shand and Patel. The Royal Canadian Mounted Police found the family frozen the next morning yards from the border.

Federal prosecutor Ryan Lipes aims to prove the pair’s smuggling involvement and unconcern for human life with flight records, phone records, and financial transactions, according to courtroom reporting from the Associated Press. On Tuesday, jurors heard testimony from a climatologist about the weather during the crossing. A mechanic testified about a van Shand may have used. A smuggled individual who survived the crossing also testified. U.S. District Judge John Tunheim allowed prosecutors to show jurors photos of the frozen family, despite objections from the defense that such images would prejudice the jury.

How is the defense arguing the charges? Patel’s attorney, Thomas Leinenweber, argued that prosecutors had no hard evidence linking his client to the deaths beyond witness testimony. Leinenweber shared Patel’s gratitude for the constitutional protections afforded him in America, according to Minnesota Public Radio. Shand’s attorney, Lisa Lopez, argued that Shand was simply hired as a driver and didn't ask questions about the people he was driving.