Fergus Falls, MN — Legal teams are pushing for acquittal or a retrial for two men convicted in a human smuggling case tied to the tragic deaths of an Indian family near the frosty Manitoba-U.S. border during January 2022. Defense motions filed Friday in the United States District Court in Minnesota seek to overturn November’s convictions of Harshkumar Patel, originally from India and residing in Chicago, and Steve Shand of Florida, who faced charges of bringing unauthorized individuals into the U.S., transporting them across states, and profiting from these actions.
This legal move follows the heart-wrenching incident almost three years ago when four members of the Patel family—not related to the defendant Harshkumar Patel—perished while attempting to cross into the U.S. amid severe winter conditions. The bodies of Jagdish Patel, 39, his wife Vaishali, 37, their 11-year-old daughter Vihangi, and three-year-old son Dharmik were discovered in a field, just meters from the border, exposed to temperatures plummeting to minus 23 degrees Celsius, feeling even colder with harsh wind chills.
During the trial, accusations surfaced claiming Shand, who was apprehended driving a van with other Indian nationals near the border around the same time, was merely an unsuspecting cab driver manipulated by Harshkumar Patel, who allegedly orchestrated the smuggling operation and employed Shand for transportation. Defense attorneys argued that Shand had no knowledge of the passengers’ immigration status or the legality of their crossing.
Moreover, lawyers for Harshkumar Patel argued the evidence presented during the trial fell significantly short, claiming no concrete proof established their client’s involvement in the alleged conspiracy or his direct communication with Shand during the smuggling operation.
Seeking a fair reassessment of their cases, Patel’s legal team filed for a retrial on the grounds of trial errors and a contention that the jury should never have been exposed to combined allegations amid separate defense strategies. This retrial motion argued that information about disciplinary action taken in 2019 against a U.S. Customs and Border Patrol agent, a key prosecution witness, was not disclosed by the U.S. Attorney’s office until after the trial progressed beyond a point when it was possible for the defense to cross-examine the witness effectively.
Meanwhile, Shand’s attorneys criticized the prosecution’s handling of evidence disclosure, asserting a deliberate delay in revealing the disciplinary record of the testifying Border Patrol agent, depriving the defense of potential exculpatory evidence. They have requested an evidentiary hearing to review the prosecution’s approach towards evidence collection and disclosure practices.
Sentencing for both men, originally scheduled for March, hangs in balance as these legal motions play out in court.
This reporting is based on court documents and other legal statements. Due to evolving narratives and ongoing legal proceedings, the facts and interpretations of the story could change. We encourage any required corrections or updates to this content to be sent directly to [email protected].