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Medical Examiner Rules Asylum Seeker’s Death a Homicide After Release by ICE

Brett T.
Brett T.  |  5:05 PM on June 16, 2026

Back in April, the death of Nurul Amin Shah Alam, a refugee from Myanmar, was ruled a homicide. He had been released from Border Patrol custody in February in Buffalo and was given a courtesy ride to a Tim Horton's donut shop. Five days later, Buffalo police found his body in the street. The medical examiner found that Alam had died of hypothermia, dehydration, and, perhaps most importantly, complications of a perforated ulcer.

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Now, DHS finds itself in the same position. A medical examiner has ruled the death of a Haitian migrant a homicide after she was released from federal custody in Pittsburgh in February.

NBC News reports, via the Associated Press:

A medical examiner has ruled the death of a Haitian asylum seeker after being released from federal custody a homicide. An attorney representing her family said he expects her relatives to sue Immigration and Customs Enforcement in connection with her death.

Daphy Michel, 31, died March 2. She was found at a bus shelter in Pittsburgh. The Allegheny County Medical Examiner’s Office found her cause of death to be hypothermia and ruled the manner a homicide, “indicating the death was caused by the actions of another individual” and should not be interpreted as a declaration of criminal guilt, the office said in a statement. The office released its findings Friday.

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The medical examiner’s office said Michel was a vulnerable adult “suffering from untreated severe mental health issues and a significant language barrier” at the time of her release on Feb. 27, the office said.

DHS had this to say about the incident:

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The post continues:

… in removal proceedings. ICE issued her an ICE ankle monitor and she was released from ICE custody on February 27. She was released with all of her belongings, including a fully charged phone, in sunny weather in the middle of Pittsburgh, where public transport is readily available. On March 3, ICE received a notification that her ankle monitor had been tampered with. ICE officers traveled to her last known location on the GPS system: the county medical office. Upon arrival, local staff refused to cooperate or even talk with ICE federal law enforcement. Our officers instead had to call the U.S. Marshal’s service, who were let into the building and were given the severed ankle monitor. However, staff refused to even tell the U.S. Marshals about the individual’s condition. ICE was never given official notification of her passing, and found out about her death via the media thanks to the local county’s refusal to even have a conversation with federal law enforcement.

Obviously, these deaths are a tragedy, but homicide, days after release from custody?

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How much responsibility does DHS hold once a detainee has been released? If she had no family and nowhere to go, she should have been kept in custody, but that's not what the Left wants.

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