DHS Responds to Story of Nearly Blind Refugee Found Dead After Being 'Abandoned' by CBP

The Left is outraged over so many things this week, from hockey to the State of the Union address, that it's hard to know where to start. One story that has gone viral online is about a refugee who died soon after being "abandoned" by the Border Patrol miles from his home. Here's FactPost, which is run by the crew who used to run Kamala HQ, and several others.

Buffalo Police have opened a homicide investigation after Border Patrol agents abandoned a blind refugee miles from his home.

If confirmed, Border Patrol will have accounted for 33% of Buffalo's homicides this year. pic.twitter.com/EF5IlHbZHE
— FactPost (@factpostnews) February 26, 2026

Homicide?

US immigration officials picked up a blind Rohingya refugee last week in Buffalo, NY. Then, realizing they had no basis to deport him, they released him five miles from his home. He needed a walking stick and died trying to make his way back to his house: https://t.co/dNBRWAiv0b
— Nicholas Kristof (@NickKristof) February 26, 2026

Still can't really process that border patrol made the decision to leave a nearly-blind refugee outside a donut shop five miles from his house. And that he then (as could have easily been imagined) died. And that there likely won't be any accountability for this.
— Sam Stein (@samstein) February 26, 2026

Good fucking morning to everybody except the ICE agents who kidnapped a blind man, realized they had no basis to deport him, and then released him five miles from his home. He died, scared and alone, just trying to find his way back to his house. That’s evil.
— Mike Nellis (@MikeNellis) February 26, 2026

Our government dropped a blind man on the side of the road, miles from home. Those agents may not have pulled a trigger, but they might as well have. https://t.co/tT8uTdnGby
— Joyce Alene (@JoyceWhiteVance) February 26, 2026

The death of a nearly blind refugee in Buffalo, New York, days after Border Patrol agents dropped him off at a coffee shop alone, has prompted an investigation into the circumstances of his final days and drawn sharp criticism from the mayor, who called the incident "deeply… pic.twitter.com/zY6uAy75ic
— CNN (@CNN) February 26, 2026

"… disturbing."

Let's hear what CNN has to say:

The death of a nearly blind refugee in Buffalo, New York, days after Border Patrol agents dropped him off at a coffee shop alone, has prompted an investigation into the circumstances of his final days and drawn sharp criticism from the mayor, who called the incident “deeply disturbing.”
Nurul Amin Shah Alam, 56, who spoke little English, had been missing since February 19, when the agents left him at the shop shortly after he was released from the Erie County jail, officials said. His body was found five days later, around 8:30 p.m. Tuesday, about four miles from the coffee shop, the Buffalo Police Department said.
“Homicide detectives are investigating the circumstances and timeframe of events leading up to his death, following his release from custody,” the police department said in a statement.
…
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.
…
Shah Alam, a refugee from Myanmar, had spent much of the previous year in custody awaiting trial on criminal charges that were ultimately resolved with a misdemeanor plea deal, Erie County District Attorney Michael J. Keane told CNN in a statement Thursday.
A police report obtained by CNN affiliate WGRZ showed Shah Alam was being held on 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.

The Department of Homeland Security has responded to CNN, The New York Times' Nicholas Kristof, The Bulwark's Sam Stein, and others.

Here are the FACTS.

On February 19, 2026, Buffalo Police Department alerted Border Patrol about a non-citizen in their custody.

Our agents confirmed that Mr. Shah Alam entered the United States as a refugee on December 24, 2024, and was not amenable to removal.

Border Patrol… pic.twitter.com/6px8wWLKD4
— Homeland Security (@DHSgov) February 26, 2026

The post continues:

… agents offered him a courtesy 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.

It wasn’t true. He asked to be dropped at the coffee shop near his home.
— @amuse (@amuse) February 26, 2026

They dropped him off where he wanted to be dropped off. The man died, but it was not due to exposure: it was due to a pre-existing medical condition. It had nothing to do with his detention.

If you have to lie to make your point, your point sucks.
— French Ironman Éric (@RickJoh44846997) February 26, 2026

What did you want them to do with him?

BP took custody, determined he was not "amenable to removal," and gave him a "courtesy ride" to a coffee shop.

An autopsy determined his cause of death was health-related, ruling out exposure, according to city officials.
— Pmdiet (@Pmdiet13) February 26, 2026

Maybe because Mr. Alam requested to be dropped off at that location and it was very close to his LAST REGISTERED address! Why didn’t his caregivers update his address?
— Social Engineer (@BonaRiverRat) February 26, 2026

Thanks for replying, @DHSgov. But some questions: 1. How did your agents determine that Mr. Shah Alam wanted to be dropped off at the coffee shop, since he did not speak English? 2. Since Mr. Shah Alam presumably had no phone or money, how did the agents expect him to get home…
— Nicholas Kristof (@NickKristof) February 26, 2026

The post continues:

… through 5 miles of snow? 3. What did they expect him to do when the coffee shop closed? 4. How did they determine that a blind man needing a cane had no "mobility issues or disabilities"? 5. In the circumstances, why not notify the police or his family rather than dump him 5 miles from home? 6. Have you verified your information any better than when you declared that Alex Pretti and Renee Good were domestic terrorists?

"Presumably had no phone or money." Why would Kristof assume that?

Should they have just kept him detained for safety reasons? Maybe you can get volunteers to give their home addresses and offer to have these people dropped off so they can take care of them? That would be nice.
— TaraSJ (@t_twotwos) February 26, 2026

There certainly should be an investigation into the man's death, but the story has morphed into the Border Patrol dropping him by the roadside, after which he died of exposure while trying to walk five miles home. Why didn't the Border Patrol just drop him at his home if it was only five miles away?

CNN reported that a city spokesperson said that "exposure and homicide have been ruled out," but Buffalo police have opened a homicide investigation? He didn't speak English, but he spoke little English? We're not getting the whole story here.

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