Indian-origin couple jailed for human trafficking

An Indian-origin couple was sentenced to prison by a court in Seattle for conspiring to smuggle people from Canada into the US.

Forty-eight-year-old Jas Binning and his 32-year-old wife Jagdeep Binning were caught last December, while trying to smuggle an undercover police officer across the border, the Vancouver Sun reported.

The couple, residents of Peace Arch Park on the US-Canadian border in South Surrey, had charged the undercover officer $5,000.

He was the second officer the Binnings had arranged to smuggle into the US within four months, according to the US court, the daily said.

The Binnings charged $4,500 from the first undercover officer in August 2008 to be smuggled into the US.

Jas was sentenced to six months in prison and two years of supervised release, while Jagdeep was sentenced to 50 days in prison and two years of supervised release.

The pair was also jointly responsible for a $5,000 fine. Both Binnings pleaded guilty in February.

In sentencing the pair, US District Judge Marsha Pechman said, "smuggling humans for profit is disrespectful to your country and to mine and to all those people who come in and legitimately make their way as immigrants," the paper said.

According to records filed in the case, the Binnings, conspired to smuggle people across the border between July and December 2008.

According to the US Attorney's office, on Aug 30 last year, Jas charged a man who was an undercover RCMP officer  $4,500 to be smuggled into the US. He took the man to his home and showed him how to walk across the park and meet up with an associate on the other side of the border.

On Dec 13, Jas Binning arranged to help another undercover RCMP constable across the border for USD 5,000. Jagdeep, who was pregnant at the time, accompanied the man into the park, while Jas briefed him on how to cross the park without attracting attention.

Emily Langlie, spokeswoman for the United States Attorney's office, said the couple was arrested in the park on the basis of large part of information gathered by the RCMP, the paper said.