Democrats press DHS to cooperate with probe into Rohingya refugee's death
US Democratic lawmakers are demanding that the Department of Homeland Security fully cooperate with an investigation into the death of Nurul Amin Shah Alam, a nearly blind Rohingya refugee left outside a closed shop by border agents in Buffalo. His death has been ruled a homicide, but DHS has withheld records.
At a press conference in Buffalo, Representative Tim Kennedy of New York, joined by fellow Democrats Bennie Thompson, Lou Correa and Nellie Pou, called on the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to fully cooperate with the Erie county district attorney's investigation into the death of 56-year-old Rohingya refugee Nurul Amin Shah Alam.
Shah Alam, who had lost much of his sight and spoke little English, was taken into US border patrol custody on 19 February after his release from the Erie county holding center, while his family waited outside expecting to bring him home. Agents later left him outside a closed coffee shop without informing his family or attorneys of his location. Five days later, he was found dead roughly four miles away.
In April, the Erie county medical examiner ruled the death a homicide, attributing it to complications from a perforated duodenal ulcer worsened by hypothermia and dehydration. The district attorney's office continues to investigate the circumstances.
In response to the case, Kennedy introduced the DHS Release Transparency Act in June, which would require immigration authorities to notify a detainee's designated family member or attorney before release and disclose where the person is being released.
In March, New York attorney general Letitia James opened a formal investigation into Shah Alam's death, but closed it in August after US Customs and Border Protection refused to cooperate, declining to identify the agents involved or provide records on transport, custody and video footage. The case was then referred to the Erie county district attorney.
On 2 September, Kennedy and Thompson sent a formal letter to DHS secretary Markwayne Mullin demanding full cooperation with the Erie county investigation. The lawmakers said that six months after Shah Alam's death, they had received no substantive response from DHS despite repeated oversight letters.
