Two Sentenced In US For Human Smuggling That Killed Four Indians, Including Children

The US Department of Justice on Thursday said that two men have been sentenced in the District of Minnesota. The arrest comes after they were convicted in a case related to an international human smuggling conspiracy that resulted in the deaths of four Indian nationals, including a three-year-old and an 11-year-old child, in January 2022.

According to the Office of Public Affairs, one of the arrested has been identified as 29-year-old Harshkumar Ramanlal Patel. He is an Indian national formerly residing in Florida and was sentenced to 10 years and one month in federal prison by a district court in Minnesota. He will now be removed from the United States following his sentence.

His co-conspirator, 50-year-old Steve Anthony Shand, also from Florida, was sentenced to six years and six months in prison, followed by two years of supervised release.