A nearly blind refugee who didn’t speak English was found dead in New York state days after he was left at a coffee shop by Customs and Border Protection officers, according to authorities.
Buffalo Mayor Sean Ryan said the death of Nurul Amin Shah Alam was preventable and “deeply disturbing and a dereliction of duty by the U.S. Customs and Border Protection.”
“A vulnerable man — nearly blind and unable to speak English — was left alone on a cold winter night with no known attempt to leave him in a safe, secure location,” Ryan said in a statement Wednesday, adding that CBP’s behavior in the incident was “unprofessional and inhumane.”
Ryan also called for accountability for CBP and for the agency to answer why and how this happened.
CBP said in a statement to NBC News that the Buffalo Police Department on Feb. 19 alerted Border Patrol about a noncitizen in their custody. CBP determined Shah Alam had entered the U.S. as a refugee in December 2024 and “was not amenable to removal” and could not be deported. Border Patrol agents offered Shah Alam a ride, “which he chose to accept to a coffee shop, determined to be a warm, safe location near his last known address, rather than be released directly from the Border Patrol station.”
“He showed no signs of distress, mobility issues, or disabilities requiring special assistance,” the agency said.
The agency declined to answer if Shah Alam’s family or friends were notified of his release and when it would take place, as well as what country the man was from.
The Buffalo Police Department did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The department told Reuters that officers located the body of Shah Alam, 56, on Tuesday evening.
The department had posted on Facebook on Tuesday morning that it needed the public’s help in locating the missing Shah Alam. The post said he was last seen at approximately 8 p.m. near the intersection of Niagara Street and Ontario Street and was wearing a dark winter jacket at the time.
On Wednesday afternoon, the department updated its post to say it was no longer searching for Shah Alam.
“Nobody told me or my family or attorney where my dad was dropped off,” Mohamad Faisal, one of Shah Alam’s children, told Reuters. Faisal told the news agency that their family were Rohingya refugees from Myanmar.
New York Gov. Kathy Hochul said Thursday that “a blind father was released from federal custody and left alone on the street to find his way home. He never made it back to his family.”
“No one should disappear at the hands of the government,” she said.
Hochul also called for accountability and an independent investigation into the incident.
