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Democratic Lawmakers Demand DHS Records Regarding Death of Rohingya Refugee in Buffalo
Just the facts
Representatives Tim Kennedy, Bennie Thompson, Lou Correa, and Nellie Pou called on DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin to direct U.S. Customs and Border Protection to comply with requests from Erie County prosecutors. Shah Alam, who was nearly blind and spoke limited English, died from hypothermia and a perforated ulcer in February 2026 after border patrol agents deposited him outside a closed coffee shop on a freezing night following his release from custody. The Erie County Medical Examiner officially ruled his death a homicide in April 2026, but an investigation by the New York Attorney General was closed in August after federal authorities refused to provide body-worn camera footage, vehicle GPS data, or the identities of involved agents.
Why this is news
Democratic lawmakers held a press conference in Buffalo, New York, demanding that the Department of Homeland Security release internal records and cooperate with a local homicide investigation into the death of Nurul Amin Shah Alam, a 56-year-old Rohingya refugee.
Sources
This summary is compiled strictly from the original reporting below.