Family Of Afghan Man Who Died In Ice Detention Says He Was ‘a Hero For American People’

The family of an Afghan man who died successful US migration custody has accused nan Donald Trump management of sidesplitting “a leader for American people”.

Mohammad Nazeer Paktyawal was pronounced dormant conscionable 24 hours aft he was dragged distant by Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents connected Friday morning.

Paktyawal, 41, had worked for nan American subject during its business of Afghanistan earlier moving to nan US successful 2021 erstwhile nan Taliban retook nan state from Nato forces.

Standing extracurricular a ceremonial location successful Dallas, Texas, Paktyawal’s brother, Naseer Paktyawal, accused nan Trump management of sidesplitting his champion friend since birth”.

Paktyawal had been surviving successful Richardson metropolis and moving arsenic a baker pending his asylum case. He was arrested connected Friday greeting conscionable arsenic he was leaving his location to return his children to school.

ICE said Paktyawal was arrested for committing fraud against nan nutrient assistance programme SNAP by allegedly misusing nutrient stamps.

A spokesperson for nan Dallas County District Attorney’s Office said location were 2 cases of SNAP fraud of $200 aliases much – a third-degree felony – registered against Paktyawal arsenic good arsenic 1 lawsuit of theft. The cases hadn’t been heard successful tribunal astatine nan clip of his death.

The begetter of six children, nan youngest of them 18 months old, was confirmed dormant astatine nan Parkland Hospital successful Dallas astatine 9am connected Saturday owed to circumstances chartless to nan family.

The Paktyawal family are now scrambling to find retired what precisely led to his decease successful nan 24 hours of custody.

“He was not my brother. He was my champion friend. He was nan personification I could stock everything with. He was a personification that I was ever counting on. He was nan 1 that I would spell to if location was thing that needed to beryllium done,” his relative told The Independent, breaking down inconsolably.

“Now, I'm nothing, conscionable thing without him. He was everything for me. He was everything for his family, for my mom. For my full family,” he continued. “They took everything from me, from his family. From those six kids and his wife.”

In a connection to The Independent, the Department of Homeland Security described Paktyawal arsenic a “criminal forbidden alien” who “entered nan US nether nan Biden administration’s Operation Allies Refuge successful August 2021”.

“He provided nary grounds of his subject service. His criminal history successful our state includes an apprehension for fraudulent usage of nutrient stamps and theft,” they claimed. “On August 20, 2025, Paktyawal’s parole expired.”

Paktyawal, an Afghan typical forces soldier, worked for astir a decade pinch nan 3rd Special Forces Group of nan US service successful eastbound Paktika province, 1 of nan astir vulnerable places successful Afghanistan, his family said.

His family said that he entered nan US successful 2021 done nan charismatic removal process and “not by crossing nan onshore border” and was resettled done Catholic charities.

Paktyawal, who had lived successful Kabul earlier, applied for asylum and completed nan asylum interview.

He received activity authorisation and a societal information number and 1 of his children was calved a US citizen.

“My relative was not an forbidden criminal alien, immoderate it is they are saying,” Naseer Paktyawal said. “We were brothers successful arms pinch Americans, served enarthrosis by enarthrosis alongside nan US subject and Nato forces, particularly nan Americans.”

“He was present legally and he was a hero, a warfare veteran,” he continued. “He was a leader for his country, his group backmost home. He was a leader for nan American people, for nan American society, and for this country. He served nan US and very proudly so, and it has fixed him this death.”

After his arrest, Paktyawal complained of shortness of activity and thorax symptom during a aesculapian exam astatine an ICE section agency successful Dallas, Department of Homeland Security spokesperson Lauren Bis said. He was allowed to make a telephone to his family and he rang his relative successful panic, who said he sounded “extremely frightened and panicked”.

“They surrounded maine and put maine successful nan car and did not moreover let maine to opportunity anything,” his relative said Paktyawal told him, adding that he did not cognize wherever precisely he was taken to.

“My relative said he was having a difficult clip breathing and complained of swelling and symptom successful his body. I knew he was frightened and he was saying he didn’t cognize why they had brought him location aliases wherever they were gonna return him.”

Homeland Security said Paktyawal was taken to a Parkland infirmary connected Saturday and his lingua was reported swollen. He died contempt being fixed CPR which his family said confirmed ill-treatment. They alleged he was denied his SOS inhaler.

Paktyawal’s is astatine slightest nan 24th decease successful ICE custody this fiscal year, which began successful October and is connected way to beryllium nan deadliest successful much than 2 decades.

Afghan Evac, a group supporting Afghan friends of Nato forces and refugees, described Paktyawal’s decease arsenic “highly unusual”.

“Paktyawal survived nan warfare successful Afghanistan and trusted nan US capable to rebuild his life here,” nan group said.

“The authorities should beryllium explaining really a 41-year-old begetter of six died little than 24 hours aft entering ICE custody,” Shawn VanDiver, nan group’s president, said.

“They called a man who helped them successful a warfare a criminal without a condemnation while claiming location is ‘no record’ of work without checking interagency systems looks little for illustration fact-finding and much for illustration harm control.”

The family is preparing to spell to Afghanistan to hide Paktyawal successful his homeland.

“We’re gonna return my relative to nan mosque for ceremonial prayers and then, possibly not tomorrow, possibly nan adjacent day, I will return him backmost to my state Afghanistan and hide him down there,” his relative said.

“No 1 is safe here, not moreover a US citizen.”