Man Charged With Smuggling Gujarati Family That Froze To Death Pleads Not Guilty

Photo: Sherburne County Sheriff

India-West News Desk

DULUTH, MN – Harshkumar Ramanlal Patel, 28, who has been accused of smuggling people across the U.S.-Canada border into Minnesota, including the Gujarati family that froze to death on the border in 2022, has entered a plea of ‘not guilty.’

Dubbed as “Dirty Harry,” Patel entered his plea via teleconference with U.S. Magistrate Judge Leo Brisbois, here. The driver, hired by Patel, Steven Shand, has also pled not guilty.

AP reported that an agent with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security said Patel has been refused a U.S. visa at least five times, including four at U.S. consulates in India and once at the U.S. consulate in Ottawa, Canada. He is in the U.S. illegally, the agent said.

Unsealed court papers connect Patel with a human trafficking group based in the northwest Indian state of Gujarat. The group allegedly would get Indian nationals into Canada on student visas, then move them on to the Chicago area, AP said.

The migrants would work for substandard wages at Indian restaurants while they paid off debt to the smugglers, according to the court documents.