A new scandal involving immigration police? Nurul Amin Shah Alam, a blind Burmese refugee, was found dead in Buffalo, New York, 8 km away from his home. According to Investigative Post, an investigative media outlet, this man, who was alone and did not speak English, had been released a few days earlier by the Border Patrol, at a restaurant far from his home, without informing his family.
A few days before his death, Nurul Amin Shah Alam had been handed over to the Border Patrol after spending several months in prison following his arrest. But according to his lawyer, this arrest was a mistake: Nurul Amin Shah Alam had gotten lost during a walk and ended up on a stranger’s porch. Not speaking English, he did not respond to the agents’ orders who intervened and told him to drop his weapon, a curtain rod he was using as a cane.
Shah Alam was eventually released on bail and handed over to Border Patrol agents. However, according to American press reports, he entered the United States as a refugee on December 24, 2024, and could not be deported.
According to a spokesperson for Customs and Border Protection, the man was offered transportation by the agents, which he chose to accept “as a courtesy” to go to a nearby cafe, considered a warm and safe place near his last known address, rather than being released directly from the border patrol station.
His family was never informed of his release at the cafe, and Shah Alam went missing. But on February 24, 5 days after being released by the police, his body was found on Perry Street, Buffalo.
The Buffalo Police Department stated that homicide detectives were investigating “the circumstances and events that led to the death of the refugee” after his release. The county coroner’s office performed an autopsy and determined that the cause of death was “related to his health” and that “exposure and homicide had been ruled out” as potential causes.
“An almost blind, vulnerable man unable to speak English was left alone on a cold winter night, without any attempt to place him in a safe and secure location,” lamented Mayor Sean M. Ryan of Buffalo on social media on February 25. “This decision by the United States Customs and Border Protection Agency was unprofessional and inhumane,” he said, describing Nurul Amin Shah Alam’s death as “predictable” and “deeply troubling.”
