Nearly blind, spoke no English: Rohingya refugee Nurul Amin dies in New York after immigration officers abandon him at coffee shop

The death of a nearly blind Rohingya refugee from Myanmar, Nurul Amin Shah Alam, in New York has triggered a major row as border patrol agents left him near a coffee shop, did not inform his family and he was found dead. The 56-year-old Alam spoke little English and was nearly blind. He was in jail much of the previous year waiting for his trial on criminal charges that were ultimately resolved. The administration initially decided that he would be removed from the country after he is discharged and hence the US Border Patrol was informed. But border agents determined that he was not fit for removal as he entered the US as a refugee on December 24, 2024.

Border Patrol agents offered him a ride and dropped him at the coffee shop which was a safe and warm location near his last known address. The CBP, coming under fire, after Alam's mysterious death, said Alam at that time showed no signs of distress, mobility issues or disabilities.

Benjamin Macaluso, a Legal Aid Bureau attorney representing Shah Alam, said he was also not notified that Alam was released. 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 started searching for him from Friday through Sunday and Macaluso opened a missing persons case with Buffalo Police Sunday. The case was initially closed as the detective also believed that Alam was in ICE custody but was reopened and his body was found five days after abouit four miles from the coffee shop. The Erie County Medical Examiner conducted an autopsy and determined Shah Alam’s cause of death was health‑related. Exposure and homicide have been ruled out, Buffalo city spokesperson Nick Beiling said.

Unprofessional and inhumane

Buffalo mayor Sean Ryan said Alam's death could have been prevented and the CBP must answer how and why this happened. “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. That decision from US Customs and Border Protection was unprofessional and inhumane,” Ryan said.

Why was Alam arrested?

Mohamad Faisal, one of his children, said the arrest was also a misunderstanding. Alam was using a curtain rod as a walking stick and wandered onto some private property and was arrested as he did not understand the officer's order to drop the curtain rod. Shah Alam was arrested and charged with two counts of assault with intent to cause injury to an officer, a count of possession of a weapon and trespassing, among other charges, before a plea deal was reached.

Faisal said he was not informed that his father was released and that he was dropped off at the coffee shop. His father did not read, write or use electronic devices, he said.