Queens high school student detained at court hearing, held in overcrowded ICE cells, released after six weeks
Jul 18, 2025·Location: Queens, NY
Country of origin: Ecuador

Derlis Snaider Chusin Toaquiza, a 19-year-old 11th grader from Ecuador at Grover Cleveland High School in Queens, was detained by ICE on June 4, 2025, during a scheduled immigration court hearing. He was initially held at 26 Federal Plaza in New York City in severely overcrowded conditions—confined in a room so crowded he could not lie down and forced to sleep sitting up with approximately two dozen other people. Over two days of detention at that facility, he was given only two meals total. He was then moved to a gymnasium inside the facility that was equally overcrowded with no beds, blankets, or access to basic necessities. After six weeks in a Texas detention facility, the Envision Freedom Fund posted his $20,000 bond, and he was released on July 18, 2025, to reunite with his family.
Timeline
Sources
- Washington Post
- nyti.ms
- Queens high school student detained by ICE to be released from Texas facility
- Queens HS student returns home after weeks in ICE detention
- Queens student detained by ICE hoped to become lifeguard, join varsity soccer team
Gothamist·Jun 18, 2025·archived copy
- NYC Law Department submits amicus brief in support of detained Ecuadorian high school student facing ICE action.
medianewssource.com·Jul 9, 2025·archived copy
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