Human smuggling case heads to trial after family deaths at Canada-U.S. border – National [Video]

Two men are to stand trial on human smuggling charges this week, almost three years after a family from India was found frozen to death on the border between Manitoba and Minnesota.

Harshkumar Ramanlal Patel and Steve Shand are accused of being part of a large operation that brought Indian nationals to Canada on student visas and then smuggled them across the United States border.

The men have pleaded not guilty to charges including conspiracy to transport aliens causing serious bodily injury and placing lives in jeopardy.

Prosecutors allege Patel co-ordinated with smugglers in Canada to have migrants dropped off near the border, where they would walk until they entered the United States and be picked up by Shand.

In court documents, prosecutors say one such operation occurred in blizzard conditions on Jan. 19, 2022, when the wind chill was below -35 C. The location was an open field on the bald prairie, exposed to the elements, near the …