Nearly blind and unable to speak English: Rohingya refugee Nurul Amin abandoned in coffee shop by immigration officials, dies in New York

Nurul Amin Shah Alam, a nearly blind Rohingya refugee from Myanmar, died in New York, sparking a major row when Border Patrol agents left him near a coffee shop without notifying his family, where he was found dead. Alam, 56, speaks little English and is nearly blind. He spent much of last year in jail awaiting trial on criminal charges that were eventually resolved. The government initially decided to deport him after he was discharged from the hospital, so it notified the U.S. Border Patrol. But border agents determined he was not eligible for deportation because he entered the United States as a refugee on December 24, 2024.Border Patrol agents gave him a ride and dropped him off at a coffee shop, a safe and warm place near his last known address. Following Alam’s mysterious death, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) said Alam showed no signs of pain, mobility or disability at the time. Legal Aid Bureau lawyer Benjamin Macaluso, who represents Shah Alam, said he had also not received notice of Alam’s release. He said he expected Alam to be taken to the ICE detention center in Batavia and released from there. Macaluso and Shah Alam’s family members began searching for him from Friday to Sunday, and Macaluso filed a missing persons case with Buffalo police on Sunday. The case was initially closed because detectives also believed Alam was in ICE custody, but the case was reopened and his body was found five days later about four miles from the coffee shop. The Erie County Medical Examiner performed an autopsy and determined that Shah Alam’s death was medically related. Buffalo city spokesman Nick Beilein said exposure and homicide have been ruled out.

Unprofessional and inhumane

Buffalo Mayor Sean Ryan said Alam’s death was preventable and that U.S. Customs and Border Protection must answer questions about how and why it happened. “A vulnerable man who was nearly blind and spoke no English was left alone on a cold winter night with no attempt to keep him in a safe place. This decision by U.S. Customs and Border Protection is unprofessional and inhumane,” Ryan said.

Why was Alam arrested?

One of his children, Mohammed Faisal, said the arrest was also a misunderstanding. Alam was wandering onto some private property using a curtain rod as a cane and was arrested for not understanding an officer’s order to lower the curtain rod. Prior to the plea agreement, Shah Alam was arrested and charged with two counts of assault with intent to injure a police officer, one count of possession of a weapon and criminal trespassing.Faisal said he was not informed that his father had been released and that he was sent to a coffee shop. He said his father could not read, write or use electronic devices.