"In the moments after Border Patrol agents dropped him off at a Buffalo doughnut shop, surveillance video recorded Nurul Amin Shah Alam stepping gingerly through the empty parking lot in his county-issued jail booties. He pulls up his hood against the cold as he walks past a drive-thru window, then paces away into the night."
"Five nights later, the nearly blind refugee from Myanmar was found dead in the street, raising questions about whether federal agents could have done more to ensure his safety when they released him from custody, miles from his home, without informing his family or lawyer."
"U.S. Customs and Border Protection said agents offered Shah Alam 'a courtesy ride' to a location near where his family had once lived, and that he had accepted the ride and showed no signs of distress or disability."
Nurul Amin Shah Alam, a 56-year-old nearly blind refugee from Myanmar, was released from county jail after federal authorities determined he was ineligible for deportation. Border Patrol agents dropped him at a Tim Hortons in Buffalo on February 19, miles from his home, without notifying his family or lawyer. Surveillance footage shows him walking alone in jail booties through an empty parking lot at a closed restaurant. Five days later, Shah Alam was found dead on a downtown street near the Buffalo Sabres arena. The circumstances of his death and movements between the drop-off location and where he was found remain unclear. U.S. Customs and Border Protection stated agents selected a warm, safe location and that Shah Alam showed no signs of distress, but questions persist about whether adequate safeguards were implemented.
Read at Boston.com
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