Ahmedabad: The human cost of illegal immigration was laid bare once again off the coast of California. A Gujarati family’s desperate quest for a life in the US ended in heartbreak on May 5, when a boat carrying illegal migrants capsized near Del Mar, claiming the lives of their 14-year-old son, Prince, and 10-year-old daughter, Mahi.The father, Brijesh Patel, is in a coma while the mother, Sangita, has also been hospitalised in a critical condition, according to a statement from the US Attorney’s Office, Southern District of California.The Patel family was among a group of 10, including four other Gujaratis, who undertook the dangerous journey, crammed on an open ‘panga’ boat meant for fishing, said sources in the know here.The couple undertook the daring journey despite the relentless crackdown on illegal immigration by US President Donald Trump govt. “The couple had reportedly paid Rs 2.6 crore — Rs 65 lakh per person — to human smugglers based in Kalol to cross into the US illegally from Mexico,” said sources close to the development here.The sources revealed, “The Patel family is from Mehsana in North Gujarat, and four others, whose identities are yet to be confirmed, are believed to be from the Charotar region of Anand.”Official US documents stated, “As rough waves hit the shore, the vessel overturned just before reaching land. Emergency responders recovered three bodies, including Prince. Mahi’s body has not been found, and she is presumed dead.”A statement from the US Attorney’s Office read: “Two complaints were filed in federal court on May 6, charging five individuals with involvement in a human smuggling operation that resulted in the deaths of at least three migrants, including a 14-year-old boy from India. His 10-year-old sister remains missing at sea and is presumed dead. Their father is in a coma, and their mother is also hospitalised.”According to the court records, witnesses observed an overturned panga boat on a beach in Del Mar on May 5. “Bystanders and San Diego lifeguards participated in the rescue. Law enforcement officials recovered three bodies, including the teenage boy. Four others, including his parents, were rescued and hospitalised,” the records stated.Mexican nationals — Julio Cesar Zuniga Luna and Jesus Juan Rodriguez Leyva — were arrested at the scene and charged with “bringing in aliens resulting in death” and “bringing in aliens for financial gain”.Later that evening, Border Patrol agents operating in Chula Vista, California, identified a vehicle seen earlier at the smuggling scene. The driver fled but further investigation led them to two other vehicles. The authorities arrested Melissa Jenelle Cota, Gustavo Lara, and Sergio Rojas-Fregosa later that night and charged them with “transportation of illegal aliens”. Rojas-Fregosa had been deported from the US just 17 months ago, on Dec 19, 2023, stated the court records.The victims’ desperate attempt mirrors the growing, and often tragic, trend of illegalimmigration from Gujarat to the US. Just last year, nine Gujaratis vanished while attempting to reach the US via the Caribbean route. Since Jan 2022, at least 11 Indians have died in similar attempts.