Death of Rohingya refugee Nurul Shah Alam abandoned by US border agents ruled homicide
Consensus Summary
Nurul Shah Alam, a 56-year-old Rohingya refugee from Myanmar, died on 24 February 2025 in Buffalo, New York, five days after being abandoned by US Border Patrol agents in a Tim Hortons parking lot during freezing temperatures. The Erie county medical examiner ruled his death a homicide, attributing it to complications from a perforated duodenal ulcer worsened by hypothermia and dehydration. Shah Alam, visually impaired and unable to speak English, had been released from Erie county custody on 19 February 2025 and transferred to Border Patrol, who left him unsupervised without notifying his family or attorney. His arrest stemmed from an incident on 15 February 2025, where he entered a residential backyard in Buffaloâs Black Rock neighborhood, leading to a tasering and charges for felony assault, burglary, and criminal mischief. After a plea deal reduced his charges, Shah Alam was released but handed over to Border Patrol, who dropped him off at a closed Tim Hortons without coordination. His family, who had resettled in Buffalo in December 2024 after fleeing Myanmarâs persecution, described the abandonment as callous and inhuman, intensifying calls for accountability. The case has sparked broader scrutiny of US immigration practices, particularly under the Trump administration, highlighting failures in detainee release protocols and the vulnerability of refugees with disabilities. Both articles agree on key facts but differ on minor details like the timing of his arrest, the specifics of his plea deal, and direct quotes from involved parties.
â Verified by 2+ sources
Key details reported by multiple sources:
- Nurul Shah Alam (56), a Rohingya refugee from Myanmar, died on 24 February 2025 in Buffalo, New York, five days after being left in a Tim Hortons parking lot by US Border Patrol agents at 8:18 PM on 19 February 2025
- The Erie county medical examiner ruled Shah Alamâs death a homicide on 31 March 2025, citing âcomplications of a perforated duodenal ulcer precipitated by hypothermia and dehydrationâ as the cause
- Shah Alam was visually impaired, unable to speak English, and wore only detention booties when left in the parking lot, with temperatures below freezing
- Shah Alam was arrested on 15 February 2025 after entering a residential backyard in Buffaloâs Black Rock neighborhood, where he was tasered and charged with felony assault, burglary, and criminal mischief
- Shah Alam was released from Erie county custody on 19 February 2025 and transferred to Border Patrol custody before being dropped off at Tim Hortons without notification to his family or attorney
- Shah Alamâs family resettled in Buffalo in December 2024 after fleeing persecution in Myanmar, with three of his sons still waiting for resettlement in Malaysia
- The Erie county district attorneyâs office opened an investigation into Shah Alamâs death, and New York Attorney General Letitia James launched a formal probe on 2 April 2025
Points of Difference
Details reported by only one source:
- DHS stated Shah Alamâs death âhad nothing to do with Border Patrolâ and called the homicide ruling âanother hoax being peddled by the media and sanctuary politiciansâ
- Tracy Chicon, the white resident whose backyard Shah Alam entered, described him as âan unidentified Black manâ and claimed he damaged her shed door with a curtain rod
- Shah Alamâs attorney, Mohamad Faisal Nurul Amin, said Chiconâs account lacked critical context, noting Shah Alam was frightened by the dog
- Body-camera footage showed Shah Alam confused, waving the curtain rod, and being tasered after refusing to drop it
- The Erie county sheriffâs office was contacted for comment on the homicide ruling but did not respond in Article 1
- Shah Alamâs wife, Fatima Abdul Roshid, said she prepared for Ramadan with her husband before his death, believing they would celebrate together for the first time in America
- Shah Alamâs attorney, Ben Macaluso, was placed on leave by the Legal Aid Bureau shortly after the incident and did not respond to requests for comment
- The Erie county district attorneyâs office agreed to a plea deal for Shah Alam on 9 February 2025, reducing charges to criminal trespass and misdemeanor possession of a weapon (using the curtain rod as a walking aid)
- District Attorney Michael Keane stated the plea deal considered Shah Alamâs âsignificant collateral consequencesâ of a felony conviction, including deportation risk
- The Erie county sheriffâs office admitted notifying the detaining agency of Shah Alamâs release was âstandard practiceâ but did not explain why his family or attorneys were not informed
- Shah Alamâs immigration attorney, Siana McLean, claimed she was assured he would not be taken into immigration custody, though the Guardian did not receive a response to comment requests
- Buffalo police officer body-camera footage reviewed by the Guardian showed Shah Alam speaking in his native language during arrest
- Tracy Chicon reportedly said to a journalist, âHe should not have even been let out of jail. I donât feel bad at allâ after Shah Alamâs death
- The Guardian reported Shah Alam was in federal custody starting at approximately 4:30 PM on 19 February 2025, with ICE declining custody and CBP assuming responsibility
- The Erie county sheriffâs office briefly closed the missing person report on Shah Alam before reopening it hours later
- Shah Alamâs family filed a missing person report on 22 February 2025 after his attorney began searching for him
Contradictions
Conflicting information between sources:
- Article 1 states Shah Alam was arrested on 19 February 2025, while Article 2 clarifies he was arrested on 15 February 2025
- Article 1 does not mention Shah Alamâs plea deal or the specific charges reduced, while Article 2 details the plea deal on 9 February 2025 reducing charges to criminal trespass and misdemeanor possession of a weapon
- Article 1 does not reference Shah Alamâs attorney, Ben Macaluso, being placed on leave by the Legal Aid Bureau, which Article 2 explicitly states
- Article 1 does not include Tracy Chiconâs direct quote about Shah Alam (âHe should not have even been let out of jailâ), which Article 2 provides
- Article 1 does not mention the Erie county sheriffâs office briefly closing the missing person report on Shah Alam before reopening it, which Article 2 details
Source Articles
Death of Rohingya refugee left in parking lot by US border agents ruled a homicide
Nurul Amin Shah, 56, who was visually impaired, was left outside Buffalo Tim Hortons on cold night and later died Authorities have ruled that the death of Nurul Amin Shah, a 56-year-old Rohingya refug...
âIt broke our homeâ: family demands answers after death of man abandoned by US border agents
Nurul Shah Alam, a nearly blind Rohingya refugee, was left alone in a Buffalo parking lot. His death has been ruled a homicide â what now? On 19 February, the second day of Ramadan, Mohamad Faisal Nur...