Human Impact Project

Ibrahim Topkaya, a 33-year-old medical doctor from Turkey working as a bioengineering researcher studying diabetes at Upstate Medical University, was detained by U.S. immigration officials after a GPS error rerouted him toward the Canadian border while he was returning from a trip to Niagara Falls with his visiting mother. Canadian border patrol turned him around with documentation confirming he never entered Canada, but U.S. officials detained him upon his return, and he is now held at the Batavia federal detention facility. His friend Omar Alsafadi said Topkaya has an approved asylum case, active work authorization, and a Social Security number, and described him as a well-respected researcher who has authored numerous medical papers. The Department of Homeland Security said Topkaya overstayed his authorized status after legally entering the country in June 2023. Topkaya has requested research materials to continue his work while detained, and his mother, visiting from Turkey for the first time in three years, has extended her stay while awaiting updates on his case.

Humberto Castro, a 59-year-old Venezuelan who has lived in Doral, Florida for eight years, was detained by ICE agents while driving to work. His daughter, Arianna Castro, said he holds a work permit valid until 2030 and has a pending asylum application, with no criminal record. He is being held at ICE offices in Miramar while his daughter tries to secure his release on bond. His case comes amid a wave of arrests of Venezuelans in South Florida that prompted two exile organizations to send Congress a report demanding oversight hearings and data on detainees with pending immigration cases.

A 22-year-old Filipina registered nurse working in an acute-care telemetry unit at a Phoenix hospital was detained by ICE agents at Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport. Her family says she held a valid work permit at the time and has no criminal history, and they remain unaware of the reason for her detention. She was transferred to the Eloy Detention Center, and her immigration case has a court hearing scheduled for September 4. Her boyfriend set up a GoFundMe page to help cover legal and financial costs as proceedings continue.

Zoilo Viloria, a 66-year-old Colombian asylum seeker who worked in building maintenance in Tacoma, Washington, was detained by ICE agents in a McDonald's parking lot while stopping for coffee on his way to work. His daughter, Stephany Viloria, said agents had been scanning license plates to check drivers' immigration status and took her father away in handcuffs after he nervously handed over his documents. She described him as a hardworking man with no criminal record, not even a traffic infraction, who entered the U.S. legally in 2018 on a tourist visa and later filed for asylum after receiving threats in Colombia tied to his work in the transportation business. He held a valid work permit and driver's license and paid taxes while his asylum case was pending. Days after his arrest, he was transferred, shackled at the hands and feet, to a detention facility in El Paso, Texas, where he has struggled with cold conditions and uncertainty about his care. His daughter posted a video denouncing the arrest, drawing attention to the case.

Adnero Pinto Sebastiao, an Angolan national with a pending asylum application, was arrested by ICE agents as he returned from lunch to his job at a bank in the Lewiston area. He had entered the U.S. legally on a tourist visa in March 2024 before applying for asylum, and his immigration case remains pending. His attorneys filed a petition for a writ of habeas corpus arguing the detention was an unlawful warrantless arrest lacking individualized assessment. A federal judge issued an indefinite injunction barring ICE from removing him from the U.S. or transferring him out of the District of Maine, and ordered the government to justify the detention. A DHS spokesperson said Sebastiao overstayed his visa and that a pending asylum application does not confer legal status.

Ya'akub Vijandre, a DACA recipient, Filipino activist, and photojournalist, was arrested at gunpoint at his home in Texas last October by federal immigration agents and has since been held at the Folkston ICE Processing Center in Georgia. His lawyers say he was targeted because of his photojournalism and social media posts critical of the Israeli genocide in Palestine and the U.S. government's treatment of prisoners held under the war on terror. A federal judge denied the Trump administration's attempt to block him from seeking release from ICE custody.

Luis Alejandro Olarte Gosling, a 19-year-old Washington and Lee University sophomore attending on a full QuestBridge scholarship, and his father Luis Felipe Olarte Lugo, 55, were detained by ICE and Border Patrol agents during a traffic stop on Interstate 95 in St. Johns County, Florida. The two were driving from Orlando to Virginia so Luis Alejandro could begin his sophomore year, having chosen to drive rather than fly due to fears about ICE activity at airports. The family are Venezuelan asylum seekers with a pending immigration court case who say they held valid work permits, attended every required appointment, and have never been arrested. Their car was towed, and both remain held at Baker Correctional Institute in Sanderson, Florida, where they have reported extreme heat and insufficient food. A GoFundMe was set up by the family to support them, and Washington and Lee University said it is 'aware of the situation and concerned for the individual and his family.'

Noune Phompor, 47, a Laotian refugee who has lived in the U.S. since 1981 under indefinite refugee status, was arrested by U.S. Border Patrol agents during his lunch break at the Chipotle where he has worked since May 2025. Phompor's family says he committed crimes in his 20s while struggling with methamphetamine addiction but has not committed a crime since at least 2014, completing his supervision requirements. He is the sole provider for his partner, Joanna Mabrey, and their 1-year-old son, and is now held at the Northwest ICE Processing Center in Tacoma awaiting removal proceedings with a deportation date of October 20. Friends, family, and Port Angeles Mayor Kate Dexter have been working to secure him legal representation and intervene with lawmakers.

Indi Veitia, a 47-year-old Venezuelan asylum-seeker who lives in Indianapolis with her wife and worked her way up from a warehouse job to a corporate position, was detained by ICE officers while walking to her gate at Atlanta's Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport during a work trip. She said plain-clothes officers slammed her against the jetway wall, handcuffed her, and transported her in an unmarked vehicle before transferring her to a detention center in Lumpkin, Georgia, where she spent 21 days in a windowless dormitory with more than 60 other women sharing four toilets and showers, at times without running water or power, describing the conditions as 'inhumane.' Veitia entered the U.S. on a work visa in 2019 and later applied for asylum, holding a valid work permit and driver's license while her application had been pending since 2020. She was released on bond after friends and her employer wrote supporting letters and secured lawyers, but now wears a GPS ankle monitor and must report to the ICE field office in Indianapolis under a court order. Her attorney said asylum applicants like her are 'low-hanging fruit' for detention despite following legal processes, while DHS said a pending asylum application does not confer legal status. Veitia said, 'I have done everything that the government have asked me to do.'

Alex Ramirez Gonzalez and Yan Vasquez Hidalgo, a married Cuban couple working in environmental services at SUNY Upstate Medical University, were detained by ICE after appearing for a scheduled immigration hearing in Mattydale, New York. The couple had fled Cuba, entered the U.S. in 2021, turned themselves in to seek asylum, and held valid work authorization. They said they were handcuffed and chained before being transported to a federal detention facility, where they were held for nearly four months, mostly separated from each other. In January, two immigration judges ruled they could not seek asylum in the U.S. but could pursue it in Ecuador, a country to which they have no connection; their lawyer appealed, and the case remains pending. They were released on bond, with one required to wear an ankle monitor, and have returned to their jobs and families in Syracuse. A third coworker, Mohamed Fofana, remains in ICE custody in Texas.

Josue Isai Pire-Hidalgo, a 31-year-old custodian at Farnsworth Elementary School in Chicago Public Schools, was detained by ICE on July 17 during what he believed was a routine immigration appointment tied to his family's asylum case. Pire-Hidalgo, a Venezuelan national with Temporary Protected Status and a pending asylum application, has no criminal record. His wife, Yulexis Padilla Julio, and their two children, ages 13 and 6, were detained alongside him but released; his wife was fitted with an ankle monitor and continued advocating for his release. Their 6-year-old daughter has asthma requiring daily medication, and Pire-Hidalgo has hearing loss in both ears and relies on hearing aids. He was held at a jail in Clay County, Indiana, describing the conditions as difficult, while the school community and SEIU Local 73 organized support including a GoFundMe that raised nearly $15,000 and meal trains for the family. After 42 days in ICE custody, he was released and reunited with his family.

A relative of Brenda Dumas who holds a valid work permit was detained by ICE in Port Isabel and, after being held, was released with an ankle monitor, becoming one of more than 50,000 people the agency is tracking with the devices. The family member requested anonymity out of fear of retaliation from the federal government. Dumas said she now uses a phone app to track family members' locations and stays in constant communication with them out of safety concerns.

Bill Bassikissa Bounguiena, a Cumberland County corrections officer, was detained by ICE in South Portland in June 2026. The Sheriff's Office said he had been hired in August 2024, had no discipline issues, and 'demonstrated dedication to his duties' by often working overtime. He held an employment authorization document confirming he could legally work in the U.S. until 2030, and the Sheriff's Office said it had no further information on why ICE detained him.

Corrections Officer Bill Bassikissa Bounguiena was detained by ICE in South Portland in June 2026. The Cumberland County Sheriff's Office said he had been hired in August 2024, had no discipline issues, and 'demonstrated dedication to his duties' by often working overtime. He held an employment authorization document confirming he could legally work in the United States until 2030, and the Sheriff's Office said it had no additional information about why ICE detained him.

Moises Velasquez, a Venezuelan asylum-seeker with a work permit and an upcoming December immigration hearing, was pulled from his car by ICE agents in Lakewood while waiting for his shift to start at a barbershop. Cellphone video shows agents smashing his car windows before dragging him out; his fiancé, who was eight months pregnant, heard his screams for help over the phone during the arrest. His attorney, Bart Klein, said ICE had been searching for a Mexican national but arrested Velasquez by mistake and sent him to the Northwest Detention Center in Tacoma even after realizing the error. Velasquez was released after his attorney filed a habeas corpus petition and has since returned to work.

Sofía Pineda Cardona, 20, and her parents, Nora Elena Cardona Bravo and Leonardo Pineda Hernández, were detained by ICE agents at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport on August 13 while preparing to board a flight to Fort Lauderdale, Florida for a birthday celebration. The family, originally from Armenia, Colombia, had chosen to fly instead of drive for the trip. Sofía's boyfriend, Nicholas Kim, a U.S. citizen she had been dating for about eight months, was traveling with them but was not detained. The family had legally entered the U.S. on tourist visas and later filed an affirmative asylum application with USCIS; their attorney, Julio Moreno, said they had work permits and no criminal record. DHS confirmed the three had overstayed their authorized period and said their cases would go before an immigration judge. They are being held at Stewart Detention Center in Georgia, and their attorney has requested bond so they can continue their case outside detention.

Wilmer Solano, a 59-year-old Venezuelan journalist with over 20 years of professional experience, was detained by CBP/ICE agents on July 26-27, 2026, during a traffic stop while working as a private transport driver at Haulover Beach in Miami Beach. Solano entered the United States legally in January 2015 on a journalist visa and filed for asylum in December 2015 after being persecuted in Venezuela for his journalism covering opposition political campaigns and figures including Henrique Capriles and Julio Borges. In August 2011, he and his cameraman were beaten by municipal officials while covering news. He previously worked for Globovisión from 2002 to 2008 and founded and directed the news agency Zorro Comunicaciones. At the time of his detention, Solano held a valid Florida work permit and driver's license. He had been granted Temporary Protected Status beginning in 2021, which expired in September 2025. According to his wife María Moreno and the Venezuelan Journalists Abroad Association (Apevex), officers detained him without a judicial warrant and without criminal charges, telling him his asylum case could take another decade and that he was in irregular immigration status. DHS confirmed the arrest and stated Solano has no immigration status allowing him to remain in the U.S. He was transported to CBP headquarters in Dania Beach with removal proceedings and an immigration court hearing scheduled for August 26, 2026.

Ledgar Ramses Delgado-Reyes, a 25-year-old Venezuelan man who entered the U.S. seeking asylum in 2023 and was granted work authorization, was reunited with his wife, Madeline Ramos-Delgado, in Las Cruces after posting a $14,000 bond following nearly a year in immigration detention. Reyes said he was called in to sign paperwork correcting an address discrepancy and was told it would be quick, but was instead detained by ICE officers. His attorney said an immigration judge found he had no criminal history, was not a flight risk given his U.S. citizen wife had relocated to be near him, and had a possibility of success in his pending asylum claim. His family raised the bond money through a GoFundMe campaign.

Luis Manuel Aviles, 48, a Nicaraguan handyman who has lived in Key West, Florida for about 19 years, was detained by Border Patrol agents during a traffic stop while driving to drop his car off at a mechanic near a Publix supermarket. Family members said he holds a work permit, Social Security card, and driver's license, has a pending asylum application, and has no criminal record. His son, Navy sailor Joshua Aviles, was more than nine months into a deployment aboard the USS Abraham Lincoln in the Middle East and called his father a 'hardworking, humble man,' describing the arrest as heartbreaking. His wife, Argelia Aviles, said, 'He dedicates himself only to work so he can put food on the table at home. He is a good father,' while his stepdaughter said her half-brother struggled to sleep and eat afterward. DHS said having a family member in the military does not confer legal status or immunity from enforcement. An immigration judge dismissed the case against Aviles days later, and he was released from custody, with his family thanking supporters and asking for privacy. His case is among dozens identified nationally involving parents and spouses of active-duty troops.

Grace Stephanie Calero Cabanilla, 39, and her 19-year-old daughter Giulianna Mía Carriel Calero, Ecuadorian nationals who fled Ecuador three years earlier due to death threats, were taken into ICE custody at HCA Florida Poinciana Hospital near Kissimmee after a highway rollover crash. Polk County Sheriff's Office deputies, operating under a 287(g) agreement with ICE, ran a database check during the crash investigation and said it revealed the women had overstayed their visas, prompting ICE detainers. Grace, still sedated and in a cervical collar, was handcuffed at her bedside, while Giulianna, who has epilepsy, suffered a seizure and was handcuffed in her hospital gown and led out in front of other patients and staff. Family members said agents did not identify themselves or produce a warrant, and the family's attorney said both women had pending asylum claims with valid work permits and visas, though the Sheriff's Office disputed this, said neither had a criminal or gang history, and stated no state charges were filed. Video of the arrest circulated widely, prompting a press conference from local immigrant advocates, while Sheriff Grady Judd said he approved of how deputies handled the arrests. Fearing for her daughter's health in detention, Grace signed voluntary departure paperwork and the pair returned to Ecuador.