Man charged in human smuggling
4 bodies in Canada near border lead to premier’s warning
WINNIPEG, Manitoba — A Florida man has been charged with human smuggling after the bodies of four people, including a baby and a teen, were found in Canada near the U.S. border in what authorities believe was a failed crossing attempt during a freezing blizzard.
Steve Shand, 47, was charged with human smuggling Thursday after seven Indian nationals were found in the U.S. and the bodies were discovered, said the U.S. attorney’s office for the District of Minnesota.
Court documents filed Wednesday in support of Shand’s arrest allege one of the people spent a significant amount of money to come to Canada with a fraudulent student visa.
“The investigation into the death of the four individuals in Canada is ongoing along with an investigation into a larger human smuggling operation of which Shand is suspected of being a part,” John Stanley, a special agent with Homeland Security Investigations, said in court documents.
Shand could not be reached for comment. His attorney, Doug Micko, declined to comment.
“This is absolutely a mind-blowing incident,” Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said Friday during an appearance in Ottawa. Traffickers took advantage of people’s desire to build a better life, he said.
“This is why we are doing everything we can do discourage people from trying to cross the border in irregularly or illegal ways,” the prime minister said.
According to documents, a U.S. Border Patrol in North Dakota stopped a 15-passenger van just south of the Canadian border Wednesday. Shand was driving and court documents allege he was with two Indian nationals.
About the same time, court documents said five people were spotted by law enforcement in the snow nearby. Also Indian nationals, they told officers they’d been walking for more than 11 hours in frigid conditions.
A woman stopped breathing several times as she was taken to the hospital. Court documents said she will require partial amputation of her hand. A man was also hospitalized for frostbite but was later released.
One of the men was carrying a backpack that had baby supplies in it. Court documents said he told officers it belonged to a family who had gotten separated from the group overnight.
Royal Canadian Mounted Police Assistant Commissioner Jane MacLatchy said at a news conference in Winnipeg on Thursday that once Mounties were notified the family might still be in Manitoba, officers immediately began searching the area.
After a difficult search in nearly impassible terrain, she said, officers found three bodies together — a man, a woman and a baby — just 33 feet from the border near Emerson, Manitoba. The search continued and a teen boy was found a short distance away. It is believed they died from exposure.
“It is an absolute and heartbreaking tragedy,” MacLatchy said.
They were wearing winter clothing, she said, but it was not enough to save them from the freezing conditions.
“These victims faced not only the cold weather but also endless fields, large snowdrifts and complete darkness,” MacLatchy said.
Shand was arrested Wednesday and remains in custody. American authorities allege in court documents that he probably has been involved in other border crossings, including two incidents in December.