Ritu Jha-
Under cover of darkness, strafed by bitter winds and obscured by a swirling blizzard, a family from the western Indian state of Gujarat met with a slow and horrific death on January 19 while trying to cross over from Canada to the U.S.
The promise of a better life lay just a few miles ahead when the family’s lives came to a cold and bitter end.
Investigators believe the family was bound for a waiting passenger van, found laden with provisions purchased in the North Dakota border town of Fargo – famous for Hollywood’s dark 1996 fusion of hapless criminal conspiracy and folksy Midwestern charm.
Court documents sent to indica by the U.S. attorney’s office states the family of four died on its way to the U.S. while two surviving Indian nationals, one male and one female, sustained serious injuries and were taken to hospital.
The court documents say the woman is still in serious condition and would require partial amputation of one hand for frostbite.
“This is such a terrible and tragic case,” Lakshmi Sridaran, executive director, South Asian Americans Leading Together (SAALT), told indica. Over the past three years, SAALT has been focused on understanding and communicating forced migration patterns from India and South Asia while addressing the conditions of the migrants in U.S. detention facilities.
“We have partnered with local community groups along the U.S.-Mexico border to support South Asian migrants in detention and continue to understand the political and religious repression often leading to this migration,” Lakshmi said. “But we are largely unfamiliar and seeking to learn more about forced migration routes from India and South Asia to the U.S. northern border through Canada.”
Shawn Neudauer, the spokesperson for the Department of Homeland Security, investing the case, told indica that Steve Shand, the man arrested in this human smuggling ring, is under investigation.
About the survivors, he said, “They were detained and treated. They were victims of a crime, and I don’t think they were arrested.”
The DHS is investigating Shand and his connections. The U.S. Customs and Border Protection confirmed that no one apart from him is in jail. The survivors and Shand were all picked up by U.S. Customs and Border Protection.
“They were provided a warm place to stay and seen to an area hospital and provided whatever resources are needed for them to recover,” he said.
Neudauer added, “I think human trafficking and smuggling and crossing the international border does happen on the southern border with Mexico and does happen on the northern border with Canada as well.”
He said people should know that “it’s not easy, as four people died. It’s not just illegal but extremely dangerous.”
The air temperature that Jan 19 night was -40° Fahrenheit and there was a blizzard and traveling was extremely dangerous.
“It shows their desperation,” the spokesperson continued. “The smuggling group would tell you anything to get their money. Do not believe them. You may be risking your life.”
Even with appropriate clothing, he said, it would be dangerous to be outdoors in such extreme conditions. “Your skin can freeze in less than 10 minutes and you can get severe hypothermia, exposure and frostbite even if you are well prepared,” he said.
Shand, 47, of Deltona, Florida, faces a single charge of transporting or attempting to transport undocumented aliens.
Shand, a resident of Florida is in custody at present. He had a second court hearing on Jan. 24.
Rebeccah Parks, public information officer, Diana E. Murphy U.S. Courthouse, Minneapolis, told indica that Shand will be released when transportation is coordinated.
“His travel will be restricted to Minnesota and the Middle District of Florida unless approved by the supervising officer.”
A court file from Florida dating back to 2018 shows that Shand, a naturalized citizen originally from Jamaica, had filed for bankruptcy more than three years ago, reporting assets worth $193,343 and liabilities of nearly $160,000.
At the time he described himself as an Uber driver and his assets included two vehicles – a 2016 Toyota SUV and a 2014 Honda Civic – and the $161,957 single-family home in the central Florida community where he lives.
Shand “was encountered driving in a rural area on a dirt road in an area far away from any services, homes or ports of entry into Canada”, the court documents said.
“He was driving through blowing snow and snow drifts. The weather was severe at the time, with high winds, blowing snow and temperatures well below (-34° C).”
According to the documents, law enforcement discovered cases of plastic cups, bottled water, bottled juice and snacks in the extreme rear of the passenger van.
Law enforcement also discovered receipts dated Jan 18 for the drinks and snacks, and rental agreement receipts in Shand’s name for the van, with the return date listed for Jan 20. USBP arrested him for smuggling undocumented foreign nationals.
While Shand and the two passengers were being transported to the Pembina Border Patrol station in North Dakota, law enforcement encountered five other Indian nationals approximately a quarter-mile south of the border walking in the direction of where Shand was arrested.
They appeared to be headed to an unstaffed gas plant in St Vincent, Minnesota.
The five said they had walked across the border expecting to be picked up by someone.
The group estimated it had been walking for over 11 hours. One of the members had a backpack that did not belong to him. He said he was carrying it for a family of four that was walking with his group but got separated during the night. The backpack contained children’s clothes, diapers, toys and some pediatric medication.
According to the court documents, later that day, the USBP received a report from the Royal Canadian Mounted Police that four bodies were found frozen just inside the Canadian side of the international border. The bodies were tentatively identified as the family of four that was separated from the other group.
According to the documents, one of the persons from Gujarat confessed to the border patrol that he had paid a hefty sum to enter Canada from India under a fraudulently obtained student visa. His intention was not to study but to use the visa to enter the U.S. He crossed the border on foot and was expecting to be picked up by someone who would drive him to his uncle living in Chicago.
The Indian embassy in Washington, DC, and the consulate in Chicago did not respond to indica’s queries. India’s ambassador to the U.S. Taranjit Singh Sandhu tweeted Jan 21 to say his officials were in touch with the American authorities over the loss of four Indian lives near the border.
Sandhu said a consular team from Chicago was traveling to Minnesota to coordinate and provide any assistance required. “An unfortunate and tragic incident,” he tweeted. “We are in touch with US authorities on their ongoing investigation. A consular team is traveling today to Minnesota to coordinate and provide any assistance required.”
Earlier, India’s external affairs minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar expressed grief over the incident. “Shocked by the report that four Indian nationals, including an infant, have lost their lives at the Canada-US border,” he tweeted. “Have asked our ambassadors in the US and Canada to urgently respond to the situation.”
