Key facts
- Democratic lawmakers are demanding that the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) provide records related to the death of Rohingya refugee Nurul Amin Shah Alam.
- Shah Alam died after US border agents left him outside a closed coffee shop in Buffalo, New York, earlier this year.
- The Erie County Medical Examiner ruled his death a homicide, citing complications from hypothermia and dehydration.
- US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) has refused to cooperate with investigations by the New York Attorney General and the Erie County District Attorney.
- Lawmakers have introduced legislation, the DHS Release Transparency Act, to require notification of detainee releases to designated contacts.
Democratic lawmakers are demanding that the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) provide records and fully cooperate with an investigation into the death of Nurul Amin Shah Alam, a nearly blind Rohingya refugee who died after US border agents left him outside a closed coffee shop in Buffalo earlier this year.
At a press conference, New York Representative Tim Kennedy, joined by Representatives Bennie Thompson (D-MS), Lou Correa (D-CA), and Nellie Pou (D-NJ), called on DHS to cooperate with the Erie County District Attorney's investigation. Kennedy stated that despite the medical examiner ruling the death a homicide, DHS has not provided any meaningful records, calling it an obstruction of justice.
Shah Alam, 56, was released from the Erie County Holding Center on February 19 and taken into custody by US border patrol agents. His family, who were waiting to pick him up, were not informed of his whereabouts. Agents left him outside a Tim Hortons coffee shop, and he was found dead five days later, approximately four miles away.
The Erie County Medical Examiner ruled his death a homicide, attributing it to complications from a perforated duodenal ulcer precipitated by hypothermia and dehydration. The district attorney's office is continuing its investigation.
In April, New York Attorney General Letitia James opened a formal investigation but closed it in August, citing the refusal of US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) to cooperate. James had requested specific agent identities and records related to Shah Alam's detention, transport, and release, which CBP declined to provide. The Attorney General's office then referred the investigation to the Erie County District Attorney.
In September, Kennedy and Thompson sent a letter to DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin, urging full compliance with the DA's investigation. They noted that six months after Shah Alam's death, DHS had not provided a substantive response despite multiple oversight inquiries. Thompson emphasized that if DHS has nothing to hide, it should turn over the records.
In response to the case, Kennedy introduced the DHS Release Transparency Act in June, which would mandate that immigration authorities notify a detainee's designated contact before release and provide information about the release location.