Police in Gujarat arrest six people in crackdown on illegal immigration
Amid a probe into the death by freezing of an Indian family of four along the US-Canada border, Senator Amy Klobuchar has asked the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) what it’s doing to combat human smuggling.
In a letter sent Wednesday, Klobuchar asked a series of questions, including what the department is doing to identify individuals involved in human smuggling, and what steps, if any, Congress could do to help.
Stressing the importance of coordinating with local and foreign agencies, Klobuchar wrote, “As a former prosecutor, I know how important it is for the federal government to closely coordinate with state and tribal law enforcement, as well as with international governments” to combat human smuggling and trafficking.
“I appreciate the Administration’s actions to stop human smuggling and trafficking, including its creation of Operation Sentinel, a counter-network targeting operation focused on stopping the smuggling of vulnerable people across the border.
Read: Indian family of four found frozen to death near US-Canada border (January 22, 2022)
“At the same time, this tragic incident illustrates that there is more work to be done,” wrote Klobuchar who in July 2019 co-led bipartisan legislation to crack down on addiction-driven human trafficking.
“Like so many others, I was horrified and heartbroken to learn that a family of four froze to death in a blizzard at the Minnesota-Canada border last week,” she wrote.
Noting federal authorities have said that they suspect that this case is linked to a larger smuggling operation in the area along the Canadian border, Klobuchar asked:
What steps has the Department taken and what steps does it plan to take to identify those who are engaging in human smuggling along the border with Canada?
What efforts has DHS made to coordinate with the Canadian government to identify and intercede human smuggling operations along the border between the two countries?
What challenges has the Department faced in its attempt to stop human smuggling across the northern border and are there any legislative steps Congress can take to address those challenges?
How has DHS coordinated and how does the Department plan to coordinate with Tribal Nations near the northern border to stop human smuggling operations along the Canadian border?
Does DHS need additional resources to counter human smuggling operations along the border with Canada?
Meanwhile, police in India’s Gujarat state from where the dead Indian family came, has arrested six people in a crackdown on “illegal” immigration.
The six arrested were running a travel and tourism company in the state, police official A K Jhala said in the state capital of Gandhinagar Thursday, according to Indian media reports.
Police he said had identified the four Indians, belonging to a single family, after law enforcement agencies on the border provided photographs of passports and other belongings.
“We are now trying to nab the human traffickers who managed to send this family and others abroad via illegal channels,” Jhala added.
“The nexus of human trafficking runs deep, often involving local politicians too,” said Jhala, adding that people even sell their land and homes to fund efforts to get to the US or Canada.
Read: Dead Indian family came from small village in Gujarat (January 24, 2022)
A foreign ministry official in the Indian capital of New Delhi said authorities were coordinating with border officials in the US and Canada to investigate the case.
Meanwhile, a Florida man charged for his role in a human-smuggling scheme will be allowed to go home to await trial, according to media reports.
Steve Shand, 47, waived his right to a preliminary hearing before US district court Judge Hildy Bowbeer agreed to release him from a North Dakota detention centre.
Shand, clad in orange prison garb and a black face mask, said little throughout the virtual hearing beyond “Yes, your Honour” and “Yes, ma’am” in response to Bowbeer’s questions, the Canadian Press reported.
Shand was released on an appearance bond, meaning that while he must abide by a number of release conditions, he will be required to make his own way back to Minnesota for any in-person court hearings.
He will also be required to surrender his passport and other related travel documents, submit to a mental-health assessment and remain in his home district in Florida except for court hearings.
Read: Sen. Klobuchar writes letter to DHS following death of 4 family members at U.S.-Canada border (January 27, 2022)
He is also forbidden from possessing any weapons and from having any contact with any witnesses or others associated with the case, and will be expected to abide by the law, Bowbeer said.
“There’s this kind of snowballing set of consequences, all of them bad, if you were to commit some new offense while you’re on release,” she said.
Shand was arrested Jan 19, the same day the bodies of four Indians were discovered in the snow on the Canadian side of the border near Emerson, Manitoba.