4 Indians freeze to death on US-Canada border

Four people, including a baby, died on the Canadian side of the border with the United States from exposure, the Canadian police said. Police believe there was human smuggling involved, the police said.

Minister S Jaishankar expressed shock over the incident, and he asked the Indian ambassadors in the US and Canada to take immediate action. A teen and an infant were among the dead, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) reported on Thursday.

It is expected that these four got separated from others who got arrested at the US side of the border. Someone from the arrested members said that a family of 4 had separated from them as they were walking through the snowstorms and the blizzards. 

“What I am about to share is going to be difficult for many people to hear as it is an absolute and heartbreaking tragedy. At this early stage of the investigation, it appears that they all died due to exposure to the cold weather,” RCMP Assistant Commissioner Jane MacLatchy told the media, adding that the group was on its own in the middle of a blizzard and “faced not only the cold weather, but endless fields, large snowdrifts and complete darkness”.

Steve Shand of Florida has been charged with human smuggling by the United States authorities.