Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents transferred a man in their custody to the emergency area of Brookdale University Hospital in Brooklyn on Tuesday after stating that he had been injured after “falling from a window.” The incident sparked a spontaneous protest from activists and elected officials.
According to sources familiar with the case, several ICE agents entered the hospital with a man who had suffered injuries during the morning of July 14. At this time, it is unknown where the incident occurred and whether the injuries were caused inside an ICE facility or elsewhere.
The agents’ presence sparked concern among residents and activists, who gathered outside the hospital just days after two high-profile cases in which ICE agents killed two men during traffic operations in other states.
Several of the vehicles parked in front of Brookdale had license plates that, according to activists, had already been used by ICE in previous operations in the city.
According to state senator Roxanne Persaud’s office, officers informed medical staff that the detainee had fallen from a window. The legislator added that the officers did not have their faces covered inside the hospital and that security personnel restricted access to some entrances to prevent them from moving freely through the building.
However, upon leaving the emergency area, our sister publication, amNewYork, observed that several agents were already wearing masks and surgical gloves, despite recent state laws restricting the use of masks by federal agents during operations in public spaces.
“I am frustrated that ICE continues to terrorize our communities with these types of actions. People are already living in constant tension and we need to work with our federal partners to put an end to this situation,” Persaud told amNewYork. “I understand they have a role to play, but they have to do it correctly.”
amNewYork requested comment from the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), but had not received a response as of press time. Representatives from the state attorney general’s office also attended the scene, although they also did not issue statements.
State Senator Zellnor Myrie also expressed concern, especially following recent fatal shootings by ICE agents in Texas and Maine.
“It is very worrying that ICE agents arrive at a hospital, in vehicles without official identification, with a seriously injured detainee. The laws we approved this year exist to protect anyone whose rights are violated by federal agents,” said Myrie.
According to published reports, Joan Sebastian Guerrero died after being shot by ICE agents on July 13 in Biddeford, Maine, while Lorenzo Salgado Araujo died on July 7 in Houston, Texas. As a result of these cases, national media reported that ICE temporarily suspended transit operations, according to an internal memo.
Murad Awawdeh, president and executive director of the New York Immigration Coalition, assured that immigrant communities live under a permanent climate of fear.
“Lorenzo Salgado Araujo and Joan Sebastian Guerrero should still be alive. No community should live in fear that masked and unidentified agents will execute a person in front of their family,” he said. “We celebrate that ICE has temporarily suspended arrests during traffic stops, because no one feels safe when these operations are carried out in that way.”
Upon leaving the hospital, one of the officers asked another where he had parked his vehicle. Upon arrival they discovered that two tires on the right side had been punctured.
Even so, they left the place driving on the wheels, while some protesters celebrated the scene. They later had to stop several blocks later to change the damaged tires.
