Indians that froze to death near US-Canada border identified

January 28, 2022 09:42

A family of four Indian nationals found frozen to death near to the Canada-US border has been identified, with Canadian authorities saying the family had moved around the country for a period of time and was driven to the border by someone in a case being described as that of human smuggling.

Jagdish Baldevbhai Patel, 39, Vaishaliben Jagdishkumar Patel, 37, Vihangi Jagdishkumar Patel, 11 and Dharmik Jagdishkumar Patel, 3, all from the same family, were found dead near Emerson, Manitoba, approximately 12 metres from the Canada-US border on January 19 by Manitoba Royal Canadian Mounted Police.

Earlier, authorities had said that the family included an adult male, adult female, teen male and infant. But it has now revealed the victims included a young girl and not a teen male.

Identities of the victims were confirmed by Canadian authorities and autopsies were completed on January 26.

The Office of the Chief Medical Examiner of Manitoba has confirmed that the cause of death was due to exposure, a statement from Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) said on Thursday.

India's High Commission in Ottawa, Canada said in a press release, which also identified the four victims, that the next of kin of the deceased have been informed.

The Consulate General of India in Toronto is in touch with the family of the deceased and is providing all consular support.

"The High Commission offers its sincere condolences to the family and friends of the victims," it said.

The press release from the Indian High Commission added that Canadian authorities have also, after medical examination, informed that based on the circumstances, the death of all the persons have been determined to be consistent with exposure to the outdoor elements.

The RCMP confirmed that the Patel family arrived in Toronto on January 12, 2022 and from there they made their way to Emerson around January 18.

"There was no abandoned vehicle located on the Canadian side of the border. This indicates that someone drove the family to the border and then left the scene," RCMP said adding that it is looking to determine how they travelled from Toronto to Emerson. -- PTI

« Back to LIVE

TOP STORIES

IPL PIX: Jadeja hits fifty but Dhoni steals the show

Images from the IPL 2024 match between Lucknow Super Giants and Chennai Super Kings.

Phase 1 sees 62.37% voter turnout, final figures on Saturday

"The voting percentage is likely to go upwards when reports from all polling stations are obtained as polling is scheduled till 6 pm in many constituencies. Final figures will be known on Saturday after the scrutiny of form 17A," the EC...

Gymnast Dipa Karmakar fails to qualify for Olympics in vault

Dipa Karmakar claimed a creditable fourth place in the women's vault final at the FIG Apparatus World Cup.

Using children in pornography a matter of serious concern, an offence too: SC

The observations came from a bench of Chief Justice DY Chandrachud and Justice J B Pardiwala while reserving the verdict on an appeal filed by NGOs -- Just Rights for Children Alliance of Faridabad and New Delhi-based Bachpan Bachao...

India's free style wrestlers miss out on Olympic qualification

Aman Sehrawat missed out on securing a berth for the Paris Games after losing his semi-final at the Asian Olympic Qualifier.