Canadian law enforcement has officially identified four Indian nationals who died in extreme cold on January 19 near the U.S. border in what apparently went wrong in a people-smuggling operation.

The RCMP identified them as Jagdishkumar Baldevbhai Patel, 39, his wife Vaishaliben Jagdishkumar Patel, 37, their daughter Vihangi Jagdishkumar Patel, 11, and son, 3. Old Damik Jagdish Kumar Patel.

They are all from Gujarat. An autopsy carried out confirmed that “depending on the circumstances, all deaths have been determined to be consistent with exposure to outdoor elements”.

The information was communicated to the Indian government on Thursday. According to a release from the Indian High Commission in Ottawa, next of kin of the deceased have been notified and the Indian Consulate-General in Toronto is in touch with the deceased’s family and providing consular support.

The Manitoba RCMP is also investigating how the family arrived in Canada and eventually Emerson, a small town near the border.

The Patel family arrived in Toronto on Jan. 12, their first entry into Canada, Manitoba RCMP’s Office of Criminal Operations Chief Superintendent Rob Hill said in a statement. The family traveled from Toronto to Manitoba and finally arrived in Emerson around January 18.

“There was not a single abandoned vehicle on the Canadian side of the border – a clear indication that someone drove the family to the border and left the scene,” he said.

“Based on what we currently know about their activities in Canada, and the arrests in the U.S., we believe this is a case of human smuggling,” he stressed.

The Manitoba RCMP is working closely with RCMP liaison officers stationed in New Delhi and Washington, India, and is in regular contact with U.S. Customs and Border Protection and Homeland Security Investigations.

Complete News Source : Hindustan Times