Report on the tragic arrest and death of Rohingya Muslim refugee Nurul Shah Alam in Buffalo, USA, sparking an outcry against minority oppression and systemic failure.
Buffalo, NY, USA — February 24, 2026
The Arrest of a Vulnerable Elder
Nurul Shah Alam, a 56-year-old Rohingya Muslim who fled genocide in Myanmar, resettled in the United States in December 2024 seeking safety. On February 15, 2025, Shah Alam went for a walk in his Buffalo neighborhood. He was nearly blind and relied on a curtain rod as a walking stick. Disoriented, he wandered onto a stranger's property, prompting a call to the police.
When Buffalo police officers arrived, they ordered him to drop the rod. Unable to speak or understand English, and severely visually impaired, Shah Alam did not comply. Bodycam footage shows officers tasering, tackling, and beating the elderly man. While you mentioned he was reciting the declaration of faith, La ilaha illallah, official translations of the footage indicate he was desperately asking God for help in his native language and attempting to explain he lived nearby. Following this violent encounter, he was charged with assault, trespassing, and possession of a weapon.
A Year in Jail and a Fatal Release
Fearing that paying his bail would trigger immediate deportation by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), his family made the agonizing decision to leave him in the Erie County Holding Center. During his year in detention, his health and eyesight deteriorated significantly.
After accepting a plea deal, Shah Alam posted bail and his release process began on February 19, 2026. His family had prepared an Iftar meal, expecting him home to break their Ramadan fast together. Instead of releasing him to his family, Erie County Sheriff's deputies transferred him to U.S. Border Patrol due to a pre-existing immigration detainer.
When Border Patrol determined he was not deportable, agents dropped the blind, non-English-speaking man off at a closed Tim Hortons coffee shop, five miles away from his home, in subfreezing temperatures. The agents did not notify his wife, his children, or his attorney. Shah Alam wandered the freezing streets of Buffalo for days before his body was discovered on the evening of February 24, 2026.
Community Outcry: Echoes of Systemic Oppression
Shah Alam's death has ignited a firestorm of grief and demands for accountability across the country. For many advocates and community members, this tragedy is a glaring reflection of systemic minority oppression and Islamophobia. The violent escalation by police against a disabled, non-English speaking man of color draws painful parallels to the national reckoning over police brutality sparked by the murder of George Floyd.
Immigrant rights groups and local leaders argue that the negligence shown by local police and federal border agents highlights a system that treats vulnerable minorities and refugees as disposable. As his family mourns during the holy month of Ramadan, they, along with civil rights advocates, are demanding a full, independent investigation into the cascading failures of the justice and immigration systems that led to his preventable death.