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Indian-origin man charged for death of Gujarati family illegally entering US
Patel, also known as Dirty Harry has been charged for transportation of an illegal alien and conspiracy
Court documents allege that Harshkumar Patel managed a gambling establishment in Florida / Image - Pexels
US authorities have apprehended a man suspected to be involved in the deaths of an Indian family of four who froze to death near Manitoba's southern border with the country two years ago, CBC reported.
Harshkumar Ramanlal Patel, has been charged in US federal court in the District of Minnesota for transportation of an illegal alien and conspiracy.
The family, not related to Harshkumar, died of exposure on January 19, 2022, while attempting to cross illegally into Minnesota near Emerson, Man. The frozen bodies of 39-year-old Jagdish Patel, his 37-year-old wife Vaishali, their 11-year-old daughter Vihangi, and three-year-old son Dharmik, were found just 12 meters from the US border.
Court documents allege that Harshkumar managed a gambling establishment in Florida and recruited alleged smuggler Steve Shand, another Florida resident who is already awaiting trial in federal court in Minnesota, for transporting illegal migrants.
On the morning of January 19, 2022, US border patrol agents arrested Shand and two migrants in a rented 15-seater passenger van on a snowy highway in Minnesota, just south of the Canadian border near Emerson, Manitoba. Five other migrants were apprehended by the border patrol walking down the same highway shortly after, as per CBC.
The latest charges against Harshkumar, as detailed in a September 2023 arrest warrant and supporting affidavit unsealed Thursday, shed new light on the night the family tragically died. They include cellphone texts exchanged between Harshkumar and Shand, which investigators claim demonstrate his role in facilitating the smuggling of the deceased family on the US side of the border.
Authorities further alleged that Harshkumar provided Shand with GPS coordinates to a pick-up spot near the US-Canada border, along with two phone numbers of contacts in Canada.
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Comments
seshan subramanian
2024-02-27 00:00:00
this happens all the time. it is the greed for money that is behind these activities
seshan subramanian
2024-02-27 00:00:00
this happens all the time. it is the greed for money that is behind these activities
seshan subramanian
2024-02-27 00:00:00
this happens all the time. it is the greed for money that is behind these activities