Border Patrol Abandons Blind Refugee in Buffalo; Death Ruled Homicide

The Erie County Medical Examiner's Office ruled Wednesday that the February death of Nurul Amin Shah Alam — a nearly blind Rohingya refugee found on a Buffalo street five days after Border Patrol agents left him at a closed doughnut shop — was a homicide.

Shah Alam, 56, died of complications from a perforated duodenal ulcer precipitated by hypothermia and dehydration, the medical examiner determined. The office did not reach any conclusions about who bore responsibility for his death. A homicide ruling means a death resulted from another person's actions or inaction, but does not by itself indicate that a crime was committed.

"This should not have happened," Erie County Executive Mark Poloncarz (D) said Wednesday at a news conference, offering condolences to Shah Alam's family. The New York state attorney general's office and the Erie County district attorney's office have both been reviewing the case. Murad Awawdeh, president of the New York Immigration Coalition, called for a criminal investigation into the agents' conduct, saying Shah Alam "was left to die in the street" and that "every single person who was involved must be held responsible."

U.S. Customs and Border Protection cited its prior statement that Shah Alam "showed no signs of distress, mobility issues, or disabilities requiring special assistance" when agents dropped him off Feb. 19 at a Tim Hortons restaurant described as "a warm, safe location" near his last known address. The Department of Homeland Security said in a Feb. 27 social media post — also cited Wednesday by CBP — that "this death had NOTHING to do [with] Border Patrol." Buffalo Mayor Sean Ryan has said the restaurant was closed when agents left Shah Alam there.

Shah Alam, a member of Myanmar's Rohingya ethnic minority, arrived in the United States as a legally approved refugee in December 2024 with his wife and two children, according to advocates for the family. He was jailed for roughly a year on charges stemming from a 2025 encounter with police before pleading guilty to two misdemeanors and being released Feb. 19. Border Patrol briefly detained him after his release, determined he was not deportation-eligible, then left him at the Tim Hortons. His family was not notified of his release. His lawyer reported him missing Feb. 22; he was found dead two days later near downtown Buffalo's NHL arena. How he traveled the several miles between the two locations and when he died remain unclear.

What This Means for the Treasure Coast

While this case unfolded in Buffalo, it carries direct implications for South Florida's immigrant communities. Martin, St. Lucie and Indian River counties are home to refugee resettlement populations served by federal programs administered through the U.S. Office of Refugee Resettlement. The case has intensified national scrutiny of CBP detention and release protocols — oversight that advocates here say affects how recently resettled refugees in the Treasure Coast region are processed and discharged following any interaction with federal immigration enforcement. The New York attorney general's review and the Erie County DA investigation are expected to continue; no charges had been filed as of Wednesday.

This article was generated with AI assistance using publicly available information. It was reviewed and approved by a human editor before publication. TC Sentinel uses AI writing tools in accordance with FTC guidelines.