The Federal Court in Minnesota sentenced Harshkumar Ramanlal Patel, known as “Dirty Harry,” and Steve Anthony Shand to ten years in prison and six and a half years–respectively–for their involvement in a human trafficking operation that, in 2022, led to the tragic freezing death of an Indian family of father, mother, and two children, ages 11 and 3. They were just a few feet from the U.S. border.
The migrants had been smuggled into Canada on student visas, only to be sent on their way to the United States in prohibitive weather conditions. Judge John Tunheim called these deaths “clearly preventable” and stressed the defendants’ lack of remorse.
“This crime is exceptionally serious, as it caused the unimaginable deaths of four people, including two children,” the judge said during the sentencing.
The family was originally from Dingucha, a village in the Indian state of Gujarat, the same village where Harshkumar Patel is from. In the village, Patel is a very common surname, but the victims were not related to the defendant.
As the Independent reports, prior to sentencing, Patel’s lawyer claimed that his client was innocent and had not played a major role in the affair, seeking a sentence of only 18 months for him. In contrast, the prosecution, represented by Lisa Kirkpatrick, argued that Patel exploited migrants’ hopes for a better life in the United States for his sole personal benefit.
“We should have no doubt: it was the defendant’s greed that set in motion the events that brought us here today,” Kirkpatrick said before the reading of the sentence.
Shand’s lawyer, Aaron Morrison, also asked for a lighter sentence of 27 months, arguing that his client had played a marginal role, merely acting as a driver.
“Mr. Shand was not part of the conspiracy: he did not plan the smuggling operation, had no decision-making power and did not receive the enormous financial benefits obtained by the real organizers,” the lawyer wrote in his defense brief.
