Indian man who wrecked car, hospitalized passengers pleads guilty to migrant smuggling

An Indian national will face jail time and deportation after leading an illegal migrant smuggling scheme that ended horribly.

Aryan Deshwal, a 21-year-old man from India, pleaded guilty on Monday to conspiracy to commit alien smuggling and five counts of alien smuggling, according to the Department of Justice (DOJ). Deshwal attempted to smuggle five illegal migrants from Canada into the country in November 2024, but totaled his vehicle when fleeing from Border Patrol agents, leaving his passengers hospitalized.

“This case illustrates the dangers of alien smuggling, and how smuggling networks put people and federal agents in harm’s way for profit,” Acting U.S. Attorney John Sarcone said in a public statement.

“Aryan Deshwal endangered the lives of the illegal aliens he picked up, the Border Patrol agents who were trying to stop him, and other people on the road,” Sarcone continued. “Thankfully, he was arrested, prosecuted, and will be held accountable for his crimes.”

Aryan Deshwal accident scene. Image courtesy of Border Patrol.

Deshwal picked up five individuals on Nov. 21, 2024, who had just unlawfully crossed the U.S.-Canada border, according to federal prosecutors. When Border Patrol attempted to pull him over, he instead chose to speed away, leading agents on a pursuit. The Indian national eventually lost control of his vehicle, causing it to flip several times and land on its side before catching fire.

All of the occupants, including Deshwal, were taken to a nearby hospital in New York State, according to the DOJ. One of the passengers required emergency surgery due to the severity of their injuries.

“This reckless act underscores the very real dangers of human smuggling and epitomizes the fact that smugglers do not care about the countless lives they put at risk in order to make a quick profit,” Patrol Agent in Charge Raymond Bresnahan said of the accident.

Deshwal faces up to fifteen years in prison for the migrant smuggling crimes, according to the DOJ. A Border Patrol sector chief added in a separate statement that the Indian national will face removal proceedings following the completion of his sentence.

While activity pales in comparison to its southern counterpart, the U.S. northern border does experience illegal migrant crossings every year. Border Patrol’s northeastern Swanton Sector — the same sector where Deshwal was apprehended — experienced record-breaking migrant arrests during the Biden-era immigration crisis in 2024.

Another crash, allegedly at the hands of an Indian national, has captured the attention of federal prosecutors.

Harjinder Singh, an Indian man living unlawfully in the U.S., was charged with three counts of vehicular homicide after allegedly making an illegal U-turn along a Florida highway earlier in August, resulting in the death of three people. Investigators later determined that Singh, who had obtained a commercial driver’s license, had extremely limited knowledge of both the English language and American road signs.

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