Human Impact Project

Three Mexican nationals and a fourth man from Absecon were detained during an ICE enforcement operation in Pleasantville on April 30, 2026, despite not being the intended targets of the action. An immigrant advocacy group stated the detainees were working fathers and husbands without criminal records. All are being held pending removal proceedings.

Dorel Patricio Tequida Valencia, a noncitizen, is currently detained at U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's Denver Contract Detention Facility in Colorado. He filed a habeas corpus petition seeking immediate release from custody or a bond hearing under 8 U.S.C. § 1226(a). The court ordered that respondents cannot remove Valencia from Colorado or the United States until the court or appeals court vacates the order, and gave respondents seven days to respond to the petition.

Osmin Ayala, an asylum seeker from El Salvador living in Oakland since 2021, faced potential re-detention by ICE despite having deferred action status through a U visa application. ICE issued a reinstatement notice in October 2025 but had repeatedly acknowledged they did not have his removal file and had previously released him multiple times as neither a flight risk nor danger. The court granted a preliminary injunction preventing his detention without a pre-deprivation hearing.

Ramon Rodriguez-Turcios, a Honduran national with a final removal order, was arrested by ICE agents during a targeted enforcement operation in Pleasantville on April 30, 2026. He was the intended target of the operation and is being held pending removal proceedings.

Honglei Han filed a petition for writ of habeas corpus requesting immediate release and prohibiting transfer or deportation without a hearing before a neutral decisionmaker. The court issued a temporary order on May 1, 2026, prohibiting the government from deporting Han until the court issues an order regarding his custody. A hearing was scheduled for May 4, 2026, and the government was ordered to file a response by May 1, 2026.

Yermi Silva De La Hoz, a noncitizen, was re-detained on April 30, 2026, at Golden State Annex after having been previously released on bond or conditional parole. The court found that the government violated his due process rights by failing to provide a pre-deprivation bond hearing before a neutral arbiter before re-detaining him. The court ordered his immediate release with the same conditions he was subject to prior to his April 30 detention, and required that any future re-detention must be preceded by at least seven days' notice and a constitutionally compliant pre-deprivation bond hearing.

Ingrid Bolanos-Gomez, 41, of Guatemala, and four co-conspirators were arrested and indicted for conspiracy to transport and harbor undocumented immigrants in a Phoenix-based smuggling operation. Federal agents discovered approximately 22 migrants held in cramped, unsanitary conditions at three stash houses and another 11 in a minivan near Cordes Lakes on April 28. The five defendants face federal conspiracy charges carrying a maximum sentence of up to 10 years in prison.

Jesus Marin-Esquivel, 52, of Mexico, was arrested and indicted for conspiracy to transport and harbor undocumented immigrants as part of a smuggling organization operating in Phoenix. He was identified as one of the drivers conducting cross-country trips with smuggled migrants.

Anita Garcia, a volunteer with SBResiste rapid response network, was physically restrained and allegedly punched by ICE agents while observing an enforcement action at the Secure Continuous Remote Alcohol Monitor office in Santa Barbara on April 30. Garcia had arrived after receiving a tip about ICE activity and entered the building to document the agents' activities. The agents accused her of impeding their work and physically restrained her against a wall, according to Garcia's account.

Jose Andres Hernandez Medina, 38, was charged with assaulting federal immigration officers after ramming multiple ICE vehicles during an attempted traffic stop near a Lewisville apartment complex on April 30. Two federal officers were hospitalized from the collision. Hernandez Medina, who had been deported three times previously, allegedly accelerated away from the stop, struck several parked cars, and attempted to flee on foot before being apprehended. A passenger was detained on an immigration hold, while a third occupant remains at large. If convicted, he faces up to 20 years in federal prison.

A man identified as Valentín was detained by ICE agents on the morning of April 30 at a residence in Jacksonville, Texas. The arrest was witnessed and recorded by resident Jeannette Rodríguez. Official reasons for the arrest have not been disclosed, and it remains unclear whether the case is part of a broader operation.

Victor Roman, co-owner of Los Guapos Latin Food in Lawrence, was detained by ICE in late April and has since been deported to Guatemala. His business and romantic partner, Lourdes E. Perez Rojo, continues operating their restaurants in Lawrence. Community members had organized a GoFundMe fundraiser and submitted character letters to support Roman's case, though the deportation proceeded.

Lisandro Pantaleon Pacheco, a 22-year-old University of Utah student and Park City High School alumnus, was detained by ICE agents on April 28-29, 2026, while commuting to his first day of work at a bagel shop in Kimball Junction, Utah. Pacheco was pulled over on S.R. 224 around 5:30 a.m. Brought to the United States from Mexico by his mother at age one, Pacheco had no criminal record except one traffic citation and was scheduled to graduate on April 30 with a bachelor's degree in parks, recreation and tourism. He had previously applied for DACA protection before the program closed. Following his detention, he was held at a county jail in Evanston, Wyoming, while his attorney raised questions about whether profiling was involved in the traffic stop and subsequent detention.

A 21-year-old man from Nicaragua was pulled over by Wildwood Police for driving a vehicle with a tinted windshield. During the traffic stop, he admitted to never obtaining a U.S. driver's license and stated he had been in the United States for approximately two years and four months. He was arrested for operating a motor vehicle without a valid license and booked at the Sumter County Detention Center, where ICE placed a hold on him for transfer to their custody.

On April 28-29, 2026, approximately 40 protesters, including Maine residents and faith leaders, gathered at ICE's Burlington field office in Massachusetts to protest overcrowding and unsanitary conditions at the facility. The group attempted to block the administrative entrance and deliver care packages and a letter of support to detainees but were denied access. Police arrested between 9 and 12 protesters for trespassing and disturbing the peace after they refused orders to relocate to a designated free speech area. All arrested protesters were released and summoned to court. Some detainees at the facility had been transferred there during a January ICE operation in Maine.

Iris Juliana Alvarenga de Vargas, a Nicaraguan citizen, was placed in removal proceedings in December 2022 and charged with inadmissibility for entering the United States without inspection. She was initially released on an Order of Recognizance but was recently re-detained and held at the Adelanto ICE Detention Facility. The court granted her temporary restraining order requiring an individualized bond hearing within 7 days.

Anna Catherine Delgado, a Venezuelan woman living in San Antonio, was detained by ICE agents on April 29, 2026, outside her residence. She was holding her 4-year-old son Isaiah when approximately eight armed agents in vests surrounded her and took her without explanation. Her husband José Rosales arrived carrying their 1-year-old daughter Hannah. Delgado and Rosales had filed for political asylum, which was denied, but she had continued attending immigration verification appointments without issue since 2020. Hannah was still breastfeeding at the time and has refused formula since her mother was taken. Delgado was transferred to Arizona and told she would be deported to Venezuela. Rosales had formally requested permission for his wife to remain in the country to begin the legal residency process, but the request had not received a response.

Adrian Gonzalez Villasana was arrested for driving while intoxicated in Dallas, Texas on October 20, 2022, and was issued a Notice to Appear for removal proceedings. He was convicted of DWI on June 15, 2023, and released on his own recognizance by DHS. On April 29, 2026, when he reported to the Dallas ICE Field Office as directed, he was re-detained. The court found that his re-detention without notice and opportunity to be heard violated due process and granted his habeas corpus petition, ordering his immediate release on the same conditions he was subject to prior to re-detention.

Alexander Valdes Cruz, who entered the United States without inspection in December 2023, was initially released on his own recognizance in January 2024. On April 29, 2026, ICE re-detained him when he appeared for a routine ICE check-in. The court granted his habeas corpus petition and ordered his immediate release under the same conditions as before his re-detention.

Elroy Rangel Morales, a Mexican citizen who had lived in the U.S. for over 16 years, was detained by ICE after being pulled over for speeding on April 29, 2026. He had approved immigration applications and no criminal history but was held without a bond hearing under a new government interpretation of detention law. The court ordered his immediate release, finding his detention violated due process rights.

Edgar R.M., an immigration detainee who entered the U.S. without inspection in February 2023, was released on his own recognizance during removal proceedings. After three years of complying with release conditions, he was arrested without notice during a routine ICE check-in in Dallas on April 29, 2026. The court granted his habeas petition and ordered his immediate release, finding his detention without pre-deprivation process violated due process rights.

Hugo Enrique Montenegro-Almanza was detained on April 29, 2026, after having been previously released on bond or conditional parole. The U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of California granted his petition for a writ of habeas corpus and motion for temporary restraining order, finding that the government violated his Fifth Amendment due process rights by re-detaining him without providing a pre-deprivation bond hearing before a neutral arbiter. The court ordered his immediate release with the same conditions he was subject to prior to his detention on April 29, 2026, and prohibited the imposition of additional restrictions such as electronic monitoring unless determined necessary at a future hearing. If the government seeks to re-detain him in the future, it must provide at least seven days' notice and hold a constitutionally compliant pre-deprivation bond hearing.

Rosedeep Manhas was lawfully admitted to the United States on a C-1 crewman visa with authorization to remain until April 12, 2021. He stayed in the country after his visa expired and filed an asylum application in June 2021. On April 29, 2026, more than five years after his visa expiration, immigration officials arrested him. The U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of California granted his petition for writ of habeas corpus, finding that his five-year period of continuous release after visa expiration created a protected liberty interest. The court ordered his immediate release from custody at the Central Valley Annex detention facility and enjoined respondents from re-detaining him without notice and a hearing before an immigration judge pursuant to 8 U.S.C. § 1226(a).

J.R.V., a 40-year-old with valid work authorization, was arrested by a sheriff's deputy in Florida in December while driving to a construction job. He was transferred through multiple detention facilities over five months, including the controversial Alligator Alcatraz in Florida, and eventually held at ICE's Aurora detention center operated by GEO Group. After 127 days in detention, he was released with only the clothes on his back and no identification documents. He filed a successful habeas corpus petition in federal court to challenge his detention and was released on April 29, 2026.

Benjamin Hernandez was stopped for a regulatory violation on Highway 49 in Concord on April 29, 2026. During the traffic stop, a K-9 unit alerted to narcotics, and a search uncovered 78.7 pounds of methamphetamine. Hernandez was arrested, charged with trafficking methamphetamine, issued a $1 million bond, and placed on an ICE detainer due to his immigration status.

Oliver Escobar Tovar, 45, was arrested around 5 a.m. on Wednesday following a traffic stop in Paragould, Arkansas after an officer observed expired tags on his vehicle. During the stop, Tovar provided a passport and insurance information, though one source notes he stated he did not have a driver's license or registration. After police contacted Homeland Security Investigators regarding Tovar's immigration status, authorities determined he had been previously deported. ICE placed a detainer on Tovar at Greene County jail.

At "Ricky" Chandee has spent 90 days in ICE detention as the Trump Administration seeks to deport him to Laos based on a conviction from the early 1990s. His family is working to prevent his deportation and keep him in the United States.

ICE conducted a targeted enforcement operation in the Antioch neighborhood of Nashville on April 29, 2026, with unmarked vehicles that remained in the area for hours. Officers with a court-issued arrest warrant detained one undocumented immigrant after observing surveillance of the location and making several attempts to communicate with individuals inside the residence. Residents gathered outside the home yelling to impede the operation. Metro Councilmember Joy Styles, who witnessed the arrest, described the scene as chaotic and noted the situation involved more than routine enforcement.

Tony Arnold Bernstone, a New Zealand citizen, was convicted of second-degree felony child kidnapping in Utah and ordered to self-deport to New Zealand for four years. The conviction resulted from an assault on a 12-year-old child following a doorbell prank incident.

Jaime Ernesto Alvarez-Gonzalez, 53, pleaded guilty to impersonating a U.S. Border Patrol agent and disrupting deportation operations in San Diego on January 8. He modified a black Ford F-150 with law enforcement-style features and followed a real Border Patrol agent, causing the officer to abandon his mission for safety. Alvarez-Gonzalez coordinated multiple vehicles to harass and chase federal agents onto the highway and possessed firearms despite being prohibited from doing so.

On April 28, 2026, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit unanimously ruled that the Trump administration's mandatory detention policy for immigrants without inspection—implemented in July 2025—violated federal immigration law and constitutional due process by denying bond hearings. The case centered on Ricardo Barbosa da Cunha, a Brazilian national who had lived in the U.S. for over 20 years with work authorization, a business, and a pending legal status application when detained under the policy in September 2025. The court rejected the government's statutory interpretation of 1996 immigration law, finding it improperly expanded detention to all non-citizens regardless of U.S. residence length, criminal history, or community ties. The decision created a circuit split, as two other appellate courts had previously upheld the policy, setting up likely Supreme Court review.

Ahmed Soliman, 30, a noncitizen whose family moved from Egypt to Arizona when he was 4, was deported by ICE on April 28, 2024, to Equatorial Guinea without notice. He has been detained at a decommissioned hotel in Equatorial Guinea for three months and says he is speaking out about injustices he and other deportees at the facility are facing, despite risks to his personal safety.

Hellen Yulissa Garcia Alfaro, a non-citizen, was detained at Adelanto ICE Processing Center for entering the United States without inspection. She was denied bond eligibility under a recent immigration decision but challenged her continued detention. The court granted her petition and ordered that she be provided a bond hearing within seven days or be released.

J.R.C., an 11-year-old from Venezuela who had lived in El Paso for nearly four years, was detained alongside his father Jesus Eduardo Reyes Hermes on April 28, 2026, when ICE agents arrested them outside their South-Central El Paso home. The boy was separated from his father and placed in shelter custody under the Office of Refugee Resettlement, while his father was transferred to Camp East Montana detention facility. J.R.C. was attending school in El Paso, where he had learned some English and was developing academically, with a teacher he credited with helping him learn to read. After his father was released on bond in June and the boy's asylum case was denied, J.R.C. requested voluntary departure on July 7, 2026, to reunite with his mother and siblings in Venezuela and Colombia. He expressed both sadness at leaving his friends and school, and excitement about seeing his family.

Arbella "Yari" Rodríguez Márquez, a 39-year-old queer woman and legal permanent resident with chronic lymphocytic leukemia since 2013, was detained by ICE on February 10, 2025, after being apprehended at the Nogales port of entry while returning from Mexico with her partner of over 13 years, Sonia Almaraz. Her legal residency was subsequently revoked by a federal immigration judge, and she was placed in removal proceedings at Eloy Detention Center. Over the course of her detention, her health has severely deteriorated: she has lost 70 pounds, developed additional conditions including rheumatoid arthritis, lymphedema, and anemia, and experiences hematemesis (vomiting blood daily), nosebleeds, bruising, extreme fatigue, and dehydration due to lack of adequate medical care—receiving only Tylenol for pain management. A parole request filed by her lawyer was denied on June 24, 2025. By April 2026, more than three dozen Arizona lawmakers, the LGBTQIA Legislative Caucus, and LGBTQ+ advocacy groups including Trans Queer Pueblo have called for her immediate humanitarian release, warning that her continued detention in a facility with a history of deaths amounts to a "death sentence" given her medical vulnerability.

Santiago Medrano was detained by ICE on April 28th, the same day his family received keys to their new home. His wife María and their five children are fundraising to cover legal immigration expenses and other costs while he remains in detention.

Jesus Eduardo Reyes Hermes, a Venezuelan national with valid Temporary Protected Status, was arrested by ICE on April 28, 2026, while working on his car outside his home in South-Central El Paso. His 11-year-old son, J.R.C., was also arrested during the incident. Reyes Hermes had lived in El Paso for nearly four years after arriving in July 2023 and had been granted TPS in 2024; he was in the process of applying for a TPS exemption at the time of his arrest. He was transferred to Camp East Montana detention facility on Fort Bliss and separated from his son. After his son and attorneys filed federal habeas corpus petitions challenging the lawfulness of their detention, U.S. District Judge Kathleen Cardone ordered bond hearings and release conditions. An immigration judge ordered Reyes Hermes released on a $5,000 bond on June 16, and he was released on June 24. However, on the same day he posted bond, USCIS issued a negative credible fear determination, triggering expedited removal proceedings against him.

A Carnegie man with valid work authorization was taken into custody by ICE. A local congressman investigated the detention and confirmed the man's valid work authorization status at the time of arrest. A federal judge subsequently granted the man a bond hearing.

Five people were indicted on federal charges after investigators discovered 11 undocumented immigrants in a minivan near Cordes Lakes on April 28, 2026, including one confined to the trunk, and 22 more at a Phoenix stash house. The investigation identified Rigoberto Rangel-Mora as the caretaker of the residence where migrants were confined to a bedroom, denied phone access, and subjected to poor living conditions. Alejandro Ambrocio-Espinosa and Enrique Cervantes-Barrera were the minivan drivers, while Jesus Marin-Esquivel and Ingrid Bolanos-Gomez were identified as additional drivers involved in cross-country smuggling trips.

Victor Alonso Molina filed a Petition for Writ of Habeas Corpus in the United States District Court for the Central District of California, Eastern Division against Shannon Dicus and other respondents. On May 26, 2026, the court issued an order granting Molina's petition for writ of habeas corpus. On May 29, 2026, the court entered final judgment granting the habeas corpus petition without requiring any further proceedings. The judgment was consistent with the reasons and findings set forth in the May 26, 2026 order. The case was decided by United States Magistrate Judge Angela C. C. Viramontes.

Denny Adan Gonzalez, a 33-year-old Cuban national, was found unresponsive in his cell at Stewart Detention Center in Lumpkin, Georgia, on April 28, 2026, at approximately 10:25 p.m. and pronounced dead at 11:11 p.m. ICE reported the suspected cause as suicide, though the official cause remained under investigation. Gonzalez had been in solitary confinement following an alleged altercation with a staff member the day before. He had arrived at a U.S. port of entry in 2019, was deported in 2020, re-entered without authorization in 2022, and was transferred to Stewart in January 2026 after arrest in North Carolina on assault and domestic violence charges. Immigration advocates, his mother Lourdes González Suárez, and U.S. Senators Jon Ossoff and Raphael Warnock called for independent investigation and improved transparency regarding ICE custody deaths.

Juan "Johnny" Cuahutencos Meza, a long-time community member from East Hampton and Brooklyn, was detained on April 28, 2026, while returning home from work. He is being held at Delaney Hall Detention Facility in Newark, NJ, allegedly as a result of racial profiling. He faces deportation due to a misdemeanor conviction from over 10 years ago and has a court appearance scheduled for May 19, 2026.

A 12-year-old boy in Anchorage, Alaska, faces deportation by ICE despite claims to U.S. citizenship through his father, a U.S. military service member. USCIS has refused to recognize his citizenship claim without DNA testing to establish paternity. The boy was born to a Nigerian mother and the case remains pending.

Catalina Santiago-Santiago, a 28-year-old DACA recipient and immigrant rights activist, was detained by ICE in early August 2025 at El Paso International Airport despite holding valid DACA status. Her attorneys filed a motion to terminate her deportation proceedings based on her DACA protections. On April 24, 2026, the Board of Immigration Appeals ruled that immigration judges cannot terminate deportation proceedings based solely on DACA status without considering the government's reasons for opposing termination. The ruling requires judges to comply with a Biden-era rule and sends Santiago's case back for further review, potentially affecting other DACA recipients in similar proceedings. The Trump administration has stated that DACA recipients are not automatically protected from deportation, contradicting the program's original protections.

ICE arrested Rafael Garcia, a Mexican national, along with multiple other individuals convicted of serious crimes including child sexual abuse, assault, and kidnapping. Garcia was specifically convicted of continuous sexual abuse of a child in Fresno County. ICE stated it would continue enforcement targeting individuals it described as threats to public safety.

A man held in an ICE detention center had his finger bitten off by another detainee and was subsequently placed in solitary confinement without antibiotics or proper medical treatment for a year. When he sought help as the infection became severely infected and ruptured, he was given only toilet paper instead of appropriate medical care. The case is part of a federal class-action lawsuit addressing inhumane and unconstitutional conditions in ICE detention facilities.

Israel Makoka, 18, and Max Makoka, 15, brothers from the Republic of the Congo on F-1 student visas, were detained by ICE agents on April 21, 2026, at a school bus stop in Diamondhead, Mississippi while waiting for transportation to Hancock High School. The teenagers were restrained with zip ties in front of classmates and family members. Their visa status had expired following an undocumented transfer from private boarding school to public high school. Both brothers had lived legally in the U.S. since 2023 and 2024, had no criminal records, and had valid guardianship paperwork from their host parents. Israel was transferred to Central Louisiana ICE Processing Facility in Jena, Louisiana, while Max was transferred to an out-of-state facility in Houston. Community members and local officials called for their release. Israel Makoka, 18, and Max Makoka, 15, from the Republic of the Congo, were detained by ICE for over a week after being arrested as they walked to their school bus stop in Diamondhead, Mississippi on July 8. The brothers had entered the U.S. on student visas in 2023 and 2024 to attend Piney Woods School, a historically Black boarding school, and stayed with their legal guardians, Gail Baptiste and her family, during summers and holidays. When the brothers transferred to nearby Hancock High School, ICE said they violated their student visas by changing schools without authorization. They were held in separate facilities in Houston and Jena, Louisiana before being released after community support and intervention from U.S. Senator Cindy Hyde-Smith's office. The family is now seeking reinstatement of the brothers' student visas.

Jefferson David Fuentes Martinez, a native and citizen of Honduras who entered the U.S. in 2024 at age 17 and is seeking asylum, was arrested for driving without a valid license. Although he was set to be released on April 27, 2026, he remains detained at Volusia County Jail pursuant to an ICE detainer. The court granted a temporary restraining order preventing his transfer from the facility.

Thi Duy Duc Duong was released from ICE custody in March 2026 by a federal court in Arizona, but was re-detained by ICE on April 27, 2026 when she reported to the Detroit ICE field office for a routine check-in. She was subsequently transferred to facilities in Louisiana and Texas without explanation or allegation of any violation of her supervision terms. The court granted emergency relief ordering her immediate release.

Anna Manvelyan petitioned the United States District Court for the Central District of California for a temporary restraining order against James Janecka and other defendants. The court granted her petition and application for a temporary restraining order on May 18, 2026. Following the court's order, the government confirmed that Manvelyan had been released from detention. On May 19, 2026, the court dismissed the petition as moot in light of her release, issuing a final judgment.