Human Impact Project

Two brothers, ages 17 and 16, from West Chicago traveled to Minneapolis to document U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement operations. The brothers have been recording Border Patrol activities, including the use of tear gas and pepper spray, and uploading footage to a public Google Drive folder. They witnessed the aftermath of Alex Pretti's death on January 24, when Border Patrol agents shot and killed the VA nurse while he was recording them. The brothers also witnessed the death of Renee Macklin Good at the hands of federal agents. They describe the enforcement actions in Minneapolis compared to what they had previously witnessed in Chicago.

Maher Tarabishi was detained by ICE on October 28, 2024, while serving as the primary caregiver for his disabled son Wael, a 30-year-old with Pompe disease. Following his father's detention, Wael's condition deteriorated rapidly. Wael died in January 2026 after being hospitalized twice since his father's arrest. The family attributed Wael's death to the loss of his father's specialized care, which Maher had provided for 30 years. The family requested Maher's release to attend his son's funeral; ICE stated it had not received a formal request.

On January 24, 2026, ICE agents fired paintball-like projectiles at vehicles driven by citizen observers monitoring immigration enforcement activity in a Home Depot parking lot in South Portland, Maine. At least two to three vehicles were struck with sticky orange paint on windshields, bumpers, and car doors. The observers were filming the agents as they conducted enforcement operations. ICE agents warned the observers that they were impeding federal law enforcement and could face arrest. The incident occurred during a broader surge in ICE enforcement operations in Maine that began the week of January 20, 2026.

Hassan Hamka, a lawful permanent resident, has been held in ICE detention for over six months while his legal case proceeds. His daughter created a petition seeking community support and character testimonials to present to the judge at his trial.

Federal immigration enforcement agencies conducted multiple operations in Minnesota in January 2026 that resulted in the detention of at least four minors. ICE detained a 2-year-old girl and her father in Minneapolis on January 23, subsequently transferring them to Texas despite a court order for the child's release, and also detained a 5-year-old student from Columbia Heights School District and transferred him to a federal facility in Texas. CBP officers separately detained two teenagers in south Minneapolis in what witnesses described as a vehicle incident that resulted in the deployment of tear gas and pepper spray, with at least two bystanders arrested.

Cong Yin, a Chinese citizen who entered the U.S. without inspection in July 2023, was re-detained by ICE on January 23, 2026, when he appeared for a routine check-in. He had been living freely in Los Angeles under an Order of Release on Recognizance since 2023 and filed an asylum application based on fear of political persecution in China. The court ordered his immediate release, finding his re-detention without a pre-deprivation hearing violated his due process rights.

Victor Manuel Diaz, a 34-year-old from Nicaragua, died at Camp East Montana detention center in El Paso, Texas, eight days after being detained by ICE in Minneapolis in January. ICE initially classified his death as a presumed suicide, though the official cause remains under investigation. His death is the third at the facility since it opened in August. Multiple Minnesota detainees have reported poor treatment, inadequate medical care, and overcrowding at the camp.

ICE agents detained Marcos Da Silva, a 32-year-old Brazilian contractor, during a traffic stop in Maine on Tuesday. Da Silva has a pending green card petition filed by his U.S. citizen wife Alex in 2024 and entered the country as an asylum seeker. He is currently being held at Moshannon Valley Processing Center in Pennsylvania with a court date scheduled for early February.

A 2-year-old girl and her father, both Ecuadorian nationals, were arrested by ICE in south Minneapolis and flown to Texas within hours, despite a federal judge's order to release the child. The judge issued an order at 8:11 p.m. Thursday to release the child by 9:30 p.m., but ICE placed them on a commercial flight to Texas at 8:30 p.m. The child was later returned to Minnesota and reunited with her mother on Friday.

Carlos Garcia Odón, a former mayor of Mérida, Venezuela who was removed from office in 2017 for opposing the Maduro government, was arrested by ICE on January 23 while living in Cincinnati since 2022. Odón has filed for asylum and his next immigration court date is scheduled for February 10.

A video from January 21, 2026 shows residents near Harbor and Orangethorpe in Fullerton confronting ICE agents and Fullerton Police during an immigration enforcement operation. The article also reports that ICE killed nurse Alex Pretti in Minnesota on January 23, 2026, with the family stating he was protecting a woman when attacked by ICE agents.

Federal immigration agents shot at people in their vehicles at least 15 times since July 2025 during Trump administration enforcement operations. In one case, Francisco Longoria's truck was shot at by agents in San Bernardino. Video evidence contradicted the government's claims of self-defense. Charges against Longoria were dropped after prosecutors stated no lawful basis for the stop existed and no evidence of injured officers was found. The shootings occurred in various jurisdictions, including Democratic-led sanctuary jurisdictions.

Alberto Castañeda Mondragón, a Mexican immigrant, was arrested by ICE agents outside a St. Paul shopping center on January 8, 2026, and suffered life-threatening head injuries. He was hospitalized at Hennepin County Medical Center with skull fractures in eight places. Castañeda alleges ICE agents pulled him from a car and beat him with a steel baton, and that he was further assaulted while in custody at the Whipple Federal Building. ICE officers provided a conflicting account to medical staff, claiming he ran headfirst into a brick wall. Castañeda filed a habeas corpus petition alleging federal agents interfered with his medical care and detained him based on his appearance.

Nine people were detained by ICE during traffic stops in Eagle County, Colorado on Wednesday. Ace of spades cards with ICE detention center contact information were found left behind in at least two abandoned vehicles by family members retrieving them. The cards have been historically used as racist symbols. DHS announced an investigation into the ICE agents' conduct.

William Vermie, an Army veteran and Purple Heart recipient, was detained by ICE agents in Minneapolis on January 13, 2026, while standing on a public sidewalk observing an immigration enforcement operation involving two young men. He was held for eight hours at the Bishop Henry Whipple Federal Building without being allowed to contact an attorney or his family, despite requesting legal representation. The Department of Homeland Security stated that Vermie was arrested for allegedly assaulting a law enforcement officer. Multiple attorneys have reported similar complaints from others arrested in recent ICE operations in Minneapolis.

Sean Sherman, owner of the restaurant Owamni, discusses ongoing ICE enforcement activities in Minnesota. Sherman describes community organizing activities, including a planned "ICE Out of MN Day" on January 23 where businesses are participating in planned activities related to immigration enforcement operations in the state.

ICE enforcement operations in Minnesota during January 2026 resulted in the detention of multiple minors, including a five-year-old boy taken from his home and at least four students from Columbia Heights Public Schools. The operations also included stops of individuals without confirmed identity verification and stops of off-duty police officers. St. Paul and Brooklyn Park police chiefs acknowledged the need for immigration enforcement while expressing concerns about racial profiling and potential civil rights violations. Community members reported being stopped without apparent cause and questioned about legal status, prompting local law enforcement leaders to call for federal accountability. Educators, families, and community advocates have expressed concern about effects on children.

Johny Merida Aguilara, an undocumented immigrant detained by ICE in September 2024, decided to accept deportation to Bolivia after nearly five months in immigration custody. His wife and three U.S. citizen children will depart with him. Their 5-year-old son has brain cancer and requires specialized treatment.

ICE agents confronted Ecuadorian immigrant Cristian Vaca at his home in Maine, with an agent threatening on camera to 'come back for your whole family.' Vaca arrived from Ecuador in September 2023 and reported having a work permit and a scheduled immigration hearing. The incident occurred during ICE's 'Operation Catch of the Day' enforcement operation in Maine.

Federal prosecutors filed charges against two American citizens, including an 18-year-old, stemming from an ICE raid at a Hardin Valley construction site. The workers are accused of preventing federal agents from enforcing immigration law, with allegations that one used his truck to strike an ICE vehicle. Witnesses dispute the account, stating an ICE agent struck the teen's truck first before agents aimed guns and forcibly removed him from the vehicle.

Cecil Elvir-Quinonez, a 25-year-old Honduran national and mother of two American-born children, has been detained in a Louisiana ICE facility for over three weeks after being stopped for speeding on New Year's Eve. She discovered she was pregnant while in custody and has experienced heavy bleeding and cramps but has not seen a doctor outside of one emergency room visit. She is awaiting deportation to Honduras and has been separated from her two young children, one of whom is still breastfeeding. More than a dozen women have reported suffering medical neglect and mistreatment while pregnant in U.S. immigration custody, including being shackled, placed in solitary confinement, and denied prenatal care, according to a letter sent to ICE and Senate committees by a coalition of advocacy groups. Specific cases described include a woman who miscarried while shackled and another denied prenatal vitamins and placed in solitary confinement. The advocacy groups, including the ACLU and National Immigration Project, are urging ICE to release all pregnant detainees. Iris Dayana Monterroso-Lemus, a 38-year-old undocumented immigrant, was detained by ICE in mid-March after missing a court hearing and transferred to Richwood Correctional Center in Louisiana in early April while pregnant. Despite repeated requests for medical attention and an ultrasound, she received inadequate prenatal care and was given only blood pressure and urine monitoring. On April 29, she was hospitalized at a labor and delivery hospital where she experienced intrauterine fetal death and underwent spontaneous vaginal delivery while under constant guard. She was subsequently deported to Guatemala. An ACLU letter documents systematic medical neglect and abuse of pregnant women held in ICE detention facilities, including cases of miscarriages while shackled, denial of prenatal care, and inadequate nutrition. The letter details accounts of multiple pregnant women detained at Basile facility in Louisiana who experienced severe complications, including one woman who miscarried while shackled and was deported despite ongoing medical issues, and another detained for over 20 weeks during a high-risk pregnancy who developed eclampsia after release. A migrant woman detained by ICE after crossing the Rio Grande had her C-section scar and umbilical hernia rip open one week into her detention. Despite reporting the injury, she was denied surgery for four months and given only pain management medication. She was separated from her 15-year-old son under the zero-tolerance policy. Only after obtaining legal representation did she receive surgery and eventually bond to be released.

ICE agents conducted traffic stops in Eagle County, Colorado on Wednesday, detaining nine people. A nonprofit characterized the stops as "fake traffic stops." After the vehicles were abandoned, family members retrieved them and found ace of spades cards printed with ICE detention center contact information. DHS stated that ICE is investigating the incident.

High school students in San Antonio organized walk-out protests on January 23, 2026, at Holmes High School, Marshall High School, and Brennan High School to oppose increased immigration enforcement operations. The student-led demonstrations were not school-sanctioned. The protests occurred during a period when ICE activity in the region was occurring and the San Antonio Police Department had proposed cooperation with ICE.

Juan Sebastian Carvajal-Munoz, a Colombian civil engineer employed by an engineering consulting firm and holding a valid work visa, was detained by ICE agents on Pearl Street in downtown Portland on January 23, 2026. Masked agents in police vests used a crowbar to smash his car window and forcibly removed him from his vehicle in less than two minutes, leaving the car running in the street. Carvajal-Munoz, who earned a master's degree from the University of Maine, has no criminal record, despite the operation being described as targeting immigrants with criminal records.

Makengo Nzeza was detained by ICE on January 23, 2026, while returning to the hospital after his wife gave birth via C-section to their newborn daughter. Nzeza, a member of First Parish Congregational Church in Saco, was arrested as part of Operation Catch of the Day. He had been granted asylum. DHS stated that Nzeza entered the country on a tourist visa in 2017 that expired in 2018. His wife was left alone at the hospital with their newborn and three other children ages 3, 6, and 11. A fundraiser was created to support the family and cover legal fees and bond costs.

Jeson Nelon Presilla Flores, one of seven people charged with stealing millions in jewelry, diamonds, emeralds, gold, rubies and designer watches in 2022, was allowed to self-deport to South America by federal immigration authorities before facing trial. He had pleaded not guilty to the charges prior to his deportation.

Osvaldo Damian Diaz Hernandez, a noncitizen who had been previously released on bond or conditional parole, was re-detained by immigration authorities on January 22, 2026 without being provided a pre-deprivation bond hearing. He filed a habeas corpus petition challenging his ongoing immigration detention. The federal court ruled that the Due Process Clause requires the government to provide a pre-deprivation bond hearing before a neutral arbiter before re-detaining someone who was previously released, and ordered his immediate release with the same conditions he had prior to detention.

Fernando Paul Leon Pinto, a noncitizen who had been previously released on bond or conditional parole, was re-detained by immigration authorities on January 22, 2026. He filed a habeas corpus petition challenging his ongoing immigration detention, arguing that the government violated his due process rights by re-detaining him without providing a pre-deprivation bond hearing before a neutral arbiter. The federal court granted his petition and ordered his immediate release with the same conditions he was subject to prior to his January 22 detention.

ICE agents detained five-year-old Liam Ramos and his father at their home in Columbia Heights, Minnesota, using the child as bait to gain entry despite the family having an active asylum case and no deportation order. Federal agents have detained children as young as four years old in ICE custody.

ICE agents detained four students from a Columbia Heights, Minnesota school district on January 21, 2026, including 5-year-old Liam Ramos and his father. The family had entered the country legally from Ecuador and had an active asylum case pending. School officials and witnesses stated that ICE refused offers from school staff and neighbors to take custody of the child. The children detained included ages 5, 10, and two 17-year-olds.

A Cumberland County corrections officer was detained by ICE agents Wednesday night in Portland despite having documentation showing he was authorized to work until April 2029. The officer had a clean background check when hired in February 2024 and was actively pursuing legal immigration status. Sheriff Kevin Joyce commented on the arrest, noting the officer's background and immigration status pursuit.

Emily Despain, a 21-year-old U.S. citizen from Tempe, Arizona, was detained by ICE for approximately four hours during a protest outside the ICE Phoenix Field Office on January 22, 2026. She alleged that an ICE agent pushed her face-first into the ground during a confrontation between protesters and agents, though she stated she did not physically engage with any officers. She was released without explanation or apology around 1:30 a.m. on January 23.

Evaristo Kalonji, an asylum seeker from Angola with no criminal record, was detained by ICE agents on January 22, 2026 in South Portland. His pastor, Carlos Nzolameso, found Kalonji's car abandoned with keys on the floor. Kalonji was moved between detention centers in Massachusetts and Rhode Island while his pending asylum case awaits a court date scheduled for May 2028.

Bob Peck, a U.S. citizen from South Portland, Maine, was threatened with arrest by ICE agents for following and observing their enforcement vehicles on January 22, 2026. His attorney filed a Federal Tort Claims Act notice seeking $7.5 million in damages, alleging violations of his First Amendment right to observe law enforcement and Fourth Amendment protections against unlawful seizure. Multiple other observers reported similar intimidation tactics including agents driving to their homes, threatening to place them on watchlists, and one agent labeling a woman a "domestic terrorist."

Former Customs and Border Patrol chief Gregory Bovino is under criminal investigation for throwing a gas canister at protesters and observers in Minneapolis' Mueller Park on January 21, 2026. Video footage documents Bovino deploying the canister, which released green gas potentially containing carcinogenic substances. The Hennepin County Attorney's Office announced the investigation as part of 17 criminal cases involving potentially unlawful conduct by federal agents during Operation Metro Surge.

Francisco Gaspar Andrés, a 48-year-old Guatemalan immigrant, died on December 3, 2025, at an El Paso hospital after 93 days in ICE custody. He was arrested in Florida on September 1 and transferred to Camp East Montana detention facility on September 19, marking the first confirmed death at that facility. His wife, Lucía Pedro Juan, was deported to Guatemala on November 28 before learning of his death. The El Paso County Medical Examiner ruled the death natural causes stemming from advanced alcoholic liver cirrhosis with renal failure and internal bleeding, though conflicting reports indicate authorities also ruled it a homicide, creating discrepancy in official determinations.

A 16-year-old Ecuadorian asylum seeker named Sebastian was detained by ICE agents in North Minneapolis in mid-January while on a food run. He was moved between multiple holding facilities, including a guarded hotel, before being flown to a youth shelter in Grand Rapids, Michigan. During his detention, his family and ICE's own attorneys reported having no record of him in custody. Lawyers located him after a week-long period.

Cecil Elvir-Quinonez, a 25-year-old pregnant Honduran national, has been detained in a Louisiana ICE facility for weeks after being stopped on New Year's Eve, separated from her two young American-born children, one of whom she is breastfeeding. She reports experiencing pregnancy complications including heavy bleeding and cramps while in custody with limited medical care, and is awaiting deportation despite having lived in the U.S. since 2014.

An 11-year-old girl from Spokane, Washington was detained by ICE along with her father, Guatemalan asylum-seekers, after he picked her up from elementary school on January 9. The father and daughter were taken to U.S. Border Patrol's Spokane headquarters for fingerprinting, then transferred to the Dilley Immigration Processing Center family detention facility in Texas. According to a Seattle Times analysis of ICE data, roughly 90 children were taken into custody in Washington state between the start of Trump's second term and mid-October.

Advocates and allies are requesting Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials immediately release Ramiro Pacheco, a Pomona resident and day laborer currently held at Adelanto Detention Center. According to his family, Pacheco has a medical condition that is rapidly deteriorating while in custody.

An immigration court judge ordered SUNY Upstate Hospital employee Yan Vazquez to be deported to Ecuador. Vazquez and his husband Alex Gonzalez, both from Cuba, filed for asylum based on persecution related to their sexuality and were in the process of becoming permanent U.S. citizens when they were detained by ICE agents in October.

Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum stated she would welcome U.S. deportees. Immigration lawyers and watchdogs conducted investigations into conditions for deportees in Mexico. Deportees reported dangers in Mexico including targeting by cartels.

An immigration judge ordered Yannier Vazquez Hidalgo, a Cuban man working at SUNY Upstate Medical University, to be deported to Ecuador, a country where he has no ties. His husband, Alicbiades Lazaro Ramirez Gonzalez, received a similar deportation order to Ecuador the previous week. Both men were detained by federal agents in October during a routine ICE appointment in Mattydale after fleeing Cuba and getting married in the U.S. They had requested asylum based on persecution fears as gay men but now face potential persecution in Ecuador.

On August 23, 2025, about 40 people gathered outside the Metropolitan Detention Center to protest ICE raids. Jessica Ramirez Vasquez, a social worker and community volunteer, was detained after using a bullhorn during the protest. Officers fired pepper balls and rubber bullets at the crowd. Jessica was arrested and charged with felony assault on a federal officer. Livestream video documented the incident.

Juan Sebastián Carvajal-Muñoz, a Colombian national with an H-1B visa working as a civil engineer in Maine, was stopped by ICE agents on January 22, 2026 while driving to work. Agents smashed his car window with a crowbar and forcibly removed him from his vehicle. Despite presenting proof of legal status, he was placed in full-body shackles, transported multiple times between Portland, Gray, Biddeford, and Burlington, Massachusetts, and held for more than a day before being released over 100 miles from home. He has filed a lawsuit against ICE for wrongful detention and civil rights violations.

ICE agents detained Juan Sebastián Carvajal-Muñoz, a civil engineer from Colombia employed by an engineering consulting firm and in the country on a work visa, in downtown Portland on January 22, 2026. Agents in an unmarked vehicle cut off his car, smashed his window with a crowbar, and forcibly removed him while he was compliant. The agents left his car running on the street with a smashed window, his belongings inside, and his phone discarded on the road.

Juan Sebastián Carvajal-Muñoz, a Colombian civil engineer legally in the U.S. on an H-1B visa, was arrested by ICE agents on January 22, 2026 during a weeklong operation in Maine. According to his lawsuit, agents broke his car window, pulled him out without a warrant, and held him for approximately 24 hours at multiple locations including the Burlington ICE field office. Carvajal-Muñoz alleges the agents violated his constitutional rights through racial profiling, excessive force, and detention without proper authority.

The Bishop Henry Whipple Building in Fort Snelling, Minnesota, which currently serves as a major immigration enforcement processing center, is located on the site of a former concentration camp used during the 1862 Dakota Indian Wars to imprison thousands of Dakota and Ho-Chunk people. In early 2026, at least three Indigenous people—Jose Ramirez (Red Lake descendant), a Dakota woman, and four Lakota men—were detained at the building, raising concerns about the historical significance of using this location for immigration enforcement.

Armande Namegni, a 30-year-old Cameroonian asylum seeker, was detained by ICE on January 22, 2026, during a routine immigration check-in in St. Louis. Officers reported finding a pending shoplifting charge on her record. Namegni stated the charge was misattributed to her and should have been cleared. Officers stated it appeared in the court system. She was transported to Phelps County jail in Rolla and remained in custody awaiting her asylum hearing. She was denied bond.

Geraldo Lunas Campos, a 55-year-old Cuban detainee, died on January 3, 2026, at Camp East Montana detention facility at Fort Bliss in El Paso during physical restraint by law enforcement. The El Paso County Medical Examiner ruled his death a homicide on January 21, 2026, determining the cause was asphyxia from neck and torso compression, with evidence of neck hemorrhages and petechial hemorrhages in the eyelids. ICE's account of events changed multiple times, initially claiming medical distress, then stating staff used force while restraining him to prevent self-harm after he allegedly resisted, before changing to suicide. Witness testimony from a fellow detainee indicated guards choked Campos to death. Camp East Montana, the largest ICE detention center in the US, has faced scrutiny for multiple detainee deaths and reported conditions including overcrowding.