Top US Democrats condemned immigration authorities after a Rohingya refugee from Myanmar was found dead following his release from detention, piling pressure on President Donald Trump’s hardline policies.
The body of Nurul Amin Shah Alam, 56, was discovered on a street in Buffalo in the north of New York state last Tuesday, a Buffalo Police Department spokesman said.
Local media reported that US Border Patrol agents dropped him off five days earlier at a restaurant. Shah Alam, described as almost blind and unable to speak in English, was found dead 6km away.
Border Patrol agents “seemingly abandoned him in the cold far from his home without telling his loved ones”, alleged Chuck Schumer, the top US Senate Democrat.
“He should be alive – and this should have never happened,” Schumer wrote on X.
Buffalo Mayor Sean Ryan also called for answers and labelled the death “deeply disturbing and a dereliction of duty” by immigration agents.
The details of Shah Alam’s case are complex. The sheriff’s office said he had been in custody since February 2025 after Buffalo police arrested him.
He was indicted on felony assault, burglary and criminal mischief charges but prosecutors offered a reduced plea, noting that a felony conviction would lead to mandatory deportation.
Shah Alam pleaded guilty on Feb 9 to two misdemeanors. He was released from custody on bail on Feb 19 with sentencing pending.
US Border Patrol arrived at the detention centre before Shah Alam was released from custody, the sheriff’s office said.
Customs and Border Protection said agents established that Shah Alam could not be deported and therefore offered him a lift to a “warm, safe location near his last known address”. — AFP
