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🇵🇾 Paraguay /Crime & Justice

Nicaraguan migrant says he suffered fractures during ICE operation in Georgia

From ABC Color · () Spanish

Translated from Spanish and summarized by DistantNews. Read the original for the full story.

At a glance

Newswire Named sources Ongoing story
  • Jeyner Méndez-Rosales, 37, was hospitalized after sustaining fractures and other injuries during an ICE operation in Lawrenceville, Georgia, according to his family.
  • His relatives said officers beat him after he ran from agents who had been hiding near his home, while the Department of Homeland Security said he tripped on a concrete step and injured his shoulder.
  • Méndez-Rosales remains in ICE custody awaiting deportation, and his family says he had no criminal record and was living legally in the United States.

Jeyner Méndez-Rosales was hospitalized and underwent surgery after an Immigration and Customs Enforcement operation in Lawrenceville, Georgia. His family says the 37-year-old Nicaraguan suffered several fractures and other injuries during the arrest.

Relatives told EFE that officers had been hiding in bushes outside his home and appeared in the darkness at about 4 a.m. on August 31, as Méndez-Rosales was leaving for work. They said he ran because he did not know whether the people emerging from the bushes were thieves.

We are demanding an explanation of what happened. He made the mistake of running, because they were hiding and came out by surprise at 4 in the morning. He did not know if they were thieves.

· Unidentified family memberA relative explained why Méndez-Rosales ran when ICE officers appeared outside his home.

A family member, who asked not to be identified for fear of retaliation, said Méndez-Rosales was kicked to the ground and beaten during a struggle. The family says he fractured a rib, an arm and a toe, dislocated a shoulder and suffered bruises across his body. One of the fractures required surgery.

Méndez-Rosales tried to flee; in the process, he tripped on a concrete step and injured his shoulder. He suffered no other injuries during the detention.

· Department of Homeland Security spokespersonDHS rejected the family’s allegation that agents beat Méndez-Rosales.

Méndez-Rosales was taken to Grady Memorial Hospital several hours after his detention, after complaining of pain. Relatives who briefly saw him there shared photographs and a video showing him chained in the hospital. They said doctors treated him while he recovered from the operation.

A Department of Homeland Security spokesperson confirmed that ICE arrested Méndez-Rosales during an operation in Lawrenceville and said he tried to escape. The spokesperson denied that agents beat him, saying he tripped on a concrete step while fleeing and injured his shoulder. DHS said he suffered no other injuries during the detention and was hospitalized after complaining of shoulder pain.

He has bruises on his ribs, in the pubic area and on his foot, in addition to the fractures. It is illogical for them to say it was a fall.

· Unidentified family memberA relative challenged the DHS account of how the injuries occurred.

The spokesperson said Méndez-Rosales would remain “in ICE custody pending his removal.” His family disputes that account, saying his injuries included blows to his ribs, pubic area and foot as well as fractures. Relatives also said they did not understand why he was detained because he had no criminal record and was living legally in the United States.

in ICE custody pending his removal

· Department of Homeland Security spokespersonDHS described Méndez-Rosales’s immigration status after the arrest.
About this summary

Originally published by ABC Color in Spanish. Translated, summarized, and contextualized automatically by DistantNews, with a note on how the source frames the story. Not individually reviewed before publishing. How this works.

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