Human Impact Project

Nancy Martinez, a 37-year-old factory worker who had lived in New Haven, Connecticut for 15 years, was arrested by ICE agents on June 9, 2025, while driving or dropping off her two U.S. citizen children at school. Masked, armed agents in unmarked vehicles boxed in her car and handcuffed her, claiming a warrant existed without ever presenting one to her or her children. Her 9-year-old son, who has autism spectrum disorder, and 14-year-old daughter witnessed the arrest and were left without a guardian until Martinez's grandmother arrived to care for them. Martinez was held about a month in detention facilities across Rhode Island, Maine, New Hampshire, and Texas, including the Wyatt Detention Facility, before being deported to Mexico. She now lives with family in Naucalpan de Juárez, sells clothing on the street, and calls her children daily before school, after school, and at bedtime. With support from the Yale Law School Worker and Immigrant Rights Advocacy Clinic, Martinez filed a federal lawsuit against ICE and the government alleging assault, recklessness, intentional infliction of emotional distress, and unlawful detention. She was among roughly 100 people arrested by ICE in Connecticut that month.

Tommy Randolph Izaguirre-Chavez, a man from Peru, was arrested by ICE agents on October 9, 2026, during a targeted operation in New London, Connecticut, after reportedly attempting to flee from immigration agents. He was taken into custody without further incident, according to a DHS spokesperson. Connecticut court records show he was convicted of first-degree unlawful restraint and third-degree assault connected to an August 2025 incident, and on September 25, 2026, he was sentenced to five years in prison, suspended after 11 months, followed by three years of probation. DHS stated that Border Patrol agents had previously encountered him near Calexico, California, in September 2022 before he was released.

ICE agents arrested Welington Leonel Almara-Diaz at Meriden Superior Court in Connecticut after Judicial Marshal Services received a Warrant of Removal/Deportation stemming from a final removal order issued in October 2023, following his apprehension by Border Patrol near Hidalgo, Texas, in September 2022. Witnesses said about ten agents, some masked, entered the courthouse around 1 p.m., and video showed marshals blocking advocates as a woman fell to the ground during the confrontation. Advocates, including Middlesex Immigrant Rights Alliance member Miguel Castro, gathered outside after learning ICE was near the courthouse, and at least one person was injured during the chaotic scene. ICE said marshals impeded the arrest and protesters blocked officers' exit, prompting agents to use their training to 'gain control of the situation.' Connecticut officials and the ACLU are investigating whether the arrest violated state law restricting civil immigration arrests on courthouse grounds without a judicial warrant and rules on mask use by officers.

Deng Dhieu Kuach Deng, a 19-year-old freshman basketball player at Southern Connecticut State University from Aweil, South Sudan, was approached and handcuffed by plainclothes ICE agents at a TSA checkpoint at Tweed New Haven Airport on September 4, 2026, while attempting to board a domestic flight to visit his girlfriend in North Carolina. Security footage showed agents escorting him to an SUV as protesters followed, with one agent appearing to push a female protester filming the arrest. A witness described the officers as 'very aggressive.' Deng had a pending asylum application and valid work authorization; his attorneys, Glenn Formica and Steven Strom, filed a habeas corpus petition alleging an officer falsely claimed he had violated Temporary Protected Status he never held and that his Fourth and Fifth Amendment rights were violated, while ICE claimed he had overstayed his legal entry. He was held at the Wyatt Detention Facility in Rhode Island, which Formica said involved sleeping on cement floors with foil blankets and broken toilets. Following advocacy from attorneys, university community members, New Haven Mayor Justin Elicker, and a student protest demanding the school protect students from on-campus ICE presence, Deng was released on September 16. Sen. Richard Blumenthal called the detention unnecessary and illegal and sought an investigation into the regional ICE field office.

Nancy Burton, a Meriden resident and member of a rapid response team monitoring ICE activity in Connecticut, was pepper-sprayed by an ICE agent exiting the Meriden courthouse during a confrontation between activists and agents. She said she was stepping away after the officer demanded she move when he deployed the spray, and was treated by an emergency medical technician at the scene. Fellow rapid response team member Madeline Gallagher was pushed to the ground by a courthouse security staffer as activists crowded around the ICE officers, briefly losing consciousness before being taken by ambulance to a hospital. The incident occurred as ICE agents detained at least one man at the courthouse, raising questions about compliance with Connecticut's Trust Act, which limits immigration enforcement at courthouses, bans masked law enforcement, and will extend protections to additional "protected areas" like hospitals, schools and places of worship starting Oct. 1.

Ainara Andreina Calderon Pena, a woman from Ecuador who legally entered the U.S. through New York City in August 2022, was arrested by ICE agents at Tweed New Haven Airport on September 11, 2026. A DHS spokesperson said she is being held for overstaying her visa and will remain in ICE custody pending removal proceedings. State court records show no pending criminal cases or convictions associated with her, and her attorney, Janne Reisch, filed a sealed petition for a writ of habeas corpus on her behalf in the U.S. District Court of Massachusetts contesting the legality of her arrest and detention. A status conference in her case was scheduled before U.S. Judge Patti B. Sarris on September 14, 2026.

Jhonny Ojeda, a 26-year-old construction worker from Ecuador who has lived in the U.S. for five years, was pulled from his truck by ICE agents on West Street in Danbury while driving home from a job site. His fiancée, Kim Rivas, said Ojeda had no criminal record, paid taxes every year, had legal representation, and was in the process of applying for U.S. citizenship. He was transferred to a detention center in Rhode Island and was scheduled to make his first appearance in federal court. His arrest came amid a wave of ICE activity in Danbury, with local officials and advocacy groups estimating that at least 70 people had been detained citywide since the enforcement actions began.

Edel Hernandez Cervantes, a Danbury, Connecticut construction worker and former bakery owner in Mexico known for making bread for Día de los Muertos and Three Kings Day, was tackled and repeatedly tased by ICE agents on August 27, 2026, after he and coworkers noticed an ICE vehicle following them and turned back toward home. Neighbors' video and a 911 call captured as many as five agents pinning him face-down while he complained of hypertension and appeared to convulse. He was taken by ambulance to Danbury Hospital, where staff and ICE initially denied his family and an attorney access to him. Family described him as someone who always kept the radio on and loved to sing. DHS said he resisted arrest, reached for a pocketknife, and carried counterfeit identification. Danbury Mayor Roberto Alves called the incident 'deeply concerning' and said he was transferred to ICE custody in Hartford before officials could intervene, leaving his whereabouts unclear for days.

Johnny Queda, a 28-year-old construction worker from Ecuador, was pulled from his truck by ICE agents on August 27, 2026, while driving home from a job site in Danbury, Connecticut. His fiancée, Kimberly Rivas, said Queda has lived in the U.S. for five years while working toward citizenship, pays taxes annually, has retained an attorney, and had no criminal record. "It's just so sad because he had nothing criminal going on. He pays his taxes every year. He has a lawyer. He does everything right," Rivas said. The arrest was captured on video by a local shop owner and occurred as part of a broader ICE enforcement operation in the Danbury area that detained more than 50 people within a week.

ICE conducted a multi-day enforcement operation in Danbury, Connecticut, with the mayor estimating about 50 people detained by Wednesday, not including further arrests on Thursday. Surveillance video from a security camera near Kennedy Park, at a business owned by Maria Rivera, captured agents throwing, kicking, and kneeling on a man's head as he was arrested outside a local Botanica store. The area had previously drawn up to 200 day laborers each morning, but immigrants and residents now avoid it, and nearby business owners reported fear and declining customer traffic. Agents were also seen waiting near school bus stops and outside a daycare center. A local blogger documenting the activity said agents grabbed day laborers off the street without warrants. Connecticut Attorney General William Tong said ICE had not explained why it was operating in Danbury and that he was exploring legal options to hold the administration accountable, while DHS confirmed the enforcement activity but declined to provide further details, citing operational security.

Feliciano Paulino Soares, a Brazilian citizen who came to the United States in 2021, was first detained by ICE for four months before being released under the agency's 'alternatives to detention' program. In August 2025, while living in Connecticut, he was arrested again as a passenger in a car and transferred to a detention facility in California. He filed a habeas petition in February 2026, and a federal judge sided with him in April, after which an immigration judge ordered his release on bond. Four days later, Utah police stopped Soares for speeding as he drove home to the East Coast, and ICE took him into custody again, transferring him to a privately run detention center in Aurora, Colorado. His attorney, Sara Vuong, filed another habeas petition, arguing there was no evidence of any material change in circumstances justifying the redetention. U.S. Magistrate Judge N. Reid Neureiter ordered his immediate release and is now weighing whether to sanction the Department of Justice, Department of Homeland Security and ICE over the rearrest, giving the government until Friday to explain its actions.

Leonel Geovanny Morocho-Arteaga, a 28-year-old Ecuadorian citizen and father of two, was arrested by ICE in Danbury, Connecticut, during a four-day operation that resulted in 118 arrests. In a sworn affidavit filed in federal court, he said agents surrounded his car moments after he put his 6-year-old son on a school bus, and that his asylum appeal was pending at the time. Video from cameras on the school bus appears to show agents detaining an adult near a nearby intersection shortly after children boarded. DHS has denied the arrest occurred at the bus stop, stating Morocho-Arteaga entered the U.S. without authorization and was previously arrested and released by Customs and Border Protection in July 2021. DHS also said agents found a kitchen knife in his vehicle and that one of his children remains under the guardianship of her mother. Morocho-Arteaga remains in ICE custody pending removal proceedings.

Two volunteers working as legal observers for Danbury Unites for Immigrants were pepper sprayed by ICE agents during an encounter on Wednesday, with one of them hospitalized afterward, according to co-founder Juan Fonseca Tapia. Tapia said an ICE vehicle struck him as agents were leaving the parking lot. The hospitalized legal observer was treated and has since returned to volunteer work, the group said.

A video posted online showed five ICE agents in Danbury attempting to wrestle a man's arms behind his back while he lay on the street in front of a preschool center. A masked agent pointed a canister of what appeared to be pepper spray at the man's face, warning, "You're going to get sprayed," while another agent ordered him to put his arms out. The incident occurred during a week in which ICE agents made a sharp uptick in arrests across Danbury, with local advocacy group Danbury Unites for Immigrants confirming dozens of arrests in the city.

Fidel, a Guatemalan immigrant working toward U.S. citizenship, was taken into ICE custody Monday morning while driving to work in Stamford, Connecticut. His wife, Olga Guerra, a U.S. citizen, found his car abandoned in the street after friends alerted her that he was seen talking with agents. He was later able to call her from a detention facility in Colorado, expressing worry for their three children. Guerra described him as "a nice husband, a great dad" and "a very hardworking person" who always cares about his family, and has secured legal representation for him.

ICE agents arrested one person in Bridgeport on Monday as part of a broader wave of enforcement activity across Connecticut that also included arrests in Danbury and Stamford. Advocates said little is known about the circumstances of the Bridgeport arrest. Community groups activated an emergency protocol to verify reports and connect affected families with legal support.

ICE agents detained four people working for tree removal companies in Stamford, part of enforcement operations that continued across the city Monday through Wednesday and extended to Danbury and Bridgeport, with a total of at least 21 people detained, according to CT Students for a Dream. Agents were reported operating near locations including Home Depot, Richmond Hill Avenue, Lockwood Avenue, Wilson Street, Harbor Point and the Stamford train station, and some detained individuals were later released after showing documentation. Stamford Mayor Caroline Simmons said she was "horrified by the cruelty" of the actions, stating that the city's streets should not see people "randomly removed" with their rights violated, and reaffirmed Stamford as a welcoming city for immigrants. ICE said it does not discuss specific operations for security reasons.

At least 16 people were arrested by ICE agents in Danbury on Monday, according to community advocates, with about half detained at a day laborer site in Kennedy Park and others stopped outside residences or businesses. Advocates said agents returned to the park twice to make arrests, and that one detained man requires dialysis treatment while another is the father of a high school student. Danbury Mayor Roberto Alves said city officials were not notified in advance of the operation and said agents appeared to be 'pulling random people' who looked Latino. Gov. Ned Lamont said the arrests did not appear targeted at violent criminals, calling those detained 'laborers seeking work' and 'parents walking their children to school.'

Camila, a 5-year-old girl from Atlixco, Mexico, crossed the U.S.-Mexico border in summer 2025 and was detained in federal immigration custody for 118 days, separated from her mother who lived only a few miles away in New Haven, Connecticut. Unable to be taken by her parents due to their immigration status, the government classified her as "unaccompanied." During detention, Camila was held first in a CBP detention center, then in a Connecticut shelter where she was the youngest child present, and finally in an office building converted for federal use. She saw her mother, who has a pending legal residency application, for only one hour per week. A child psychiatrist's evaluation documented that Camila experienced nightmares, anxiety about family separation, and fear expressed through play. Her mother applied for custody but waited more than 90 days without receiving a decision, as the federal government repeatedly added requirements before deeming her application complete. Camila was released three days after her attorneys filed a lawsuit challenging the legality of her detention. She is now home with her mother and newborn brother, though she continues to experience separation anxiety and sleeps with her mother at night. During the same period, more than two dozen unaccompanied immigrant children were in federal custody in Connecticut on any given day, with some held for as long as 505 days.

Miguel was 14 years old and aspired to be a teacher. He was held in federal custody for 167 days. This source is part of a broader CT Insider investigation into extended detentions of immigrant children under Trump administration policies that imposed stringent new requirements for their release. The article covers six children held in Connecticut federal custody, with detention lengths ranging from 118 to 505 days, many while their families awaited approval despite meeting all vetting requirements.