Human smuggling trial witness says he was separated from a family hours before they froze to death

FERGUS FALLS, Minn. (AP) — An Indian national who survived a treacherous trek across the U.S.-Canada border in blizzard conditions has testified that he got separated from a family of four shortly before they froze to death. Yash Patel took the stand Wednesday in the trial of Indian national Harshkumar Ramanlal Patel and Steve Shand. Prosecutors say they attempted to smuggle Indian migrants across the border into Minnesota over a five-week period. Federal prosecutors say a family of four died before they made it across the border. The Canadian Press reported that Yash Patel testified that he got separated from the Patel family and walked alone for five or six hours until he made it across the border.