Afghan War Veteran Dies After One Day in ICE Custody
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An Afghan asylum seeker who had previously worked alongside U.S. forces in Afghanistan died just over 24 hours after being taken into ICE custody in Texas, according to family members and an advocacy group.
Mohommad Nazeer Paktyawal, 41, died on March 14 after being detained the previous day in the Dallas area, according to an Immigration and Customs Enforcement news release and a statement from his family.
The cause of death has not been publicly confirmed. Paktyawal is at least the 12th person to die in ICE custody in 2026, according to a Newsweek analysis of detainee death notifications, surpassing the 2024 total of 11.
Local authorities arrested Paktyawal on September 16, 2025, on a felony charge related to Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program fraud and again on November 1, 2025, on a theft charge, ICE said.
According to AfghanEvac, the arrests did not result in criminal charges, and Paktyawal had not been convicted of any crimes.
Paktyawal had been living in Richardson, Texas, with his wife and six children while his asylum application remained pending, according to his family, who shared information with the advocacy group AfghanEvac. Family members said he was the primary provider for the household and worked at an Afghan market and bakery in the Dallas area.
“Nazeer was a loving husband and father. His children adored him, and he worked hard every day to take care of them and build a future for them in the United States,” the Paktyawal family said in a statement shared with Newsweek.
Paktyawal was detained around 7 a.m. on March 13 outside his apartment while preparing to drive his children to school, AfghanEvac said.
Several federal agents in unmarked vehicles approached him and took him into custody in front of his children, according to the family’s account shared by AfghanEvac.
“His children watched as he was surrounded and taken away. That moment will stay with them forever,” the family said.
Later that day, Paktyawal contacted relatives from detention and said he was not feeling well, according to his family. Around 11:45 p.m. on March 13, he was admitted to Parkland Hospital in Dallas, according to information the family said they received from authorities.
Relatives were told around 8 a.m. on March 14 that he was still alive, the family said. By about noon the same day, family members said they were informed that he had died.
Paktyawal served for more than a decade as an Afghan special forces soldier beginning in 2005, according to AfghanEvac and the family’s statement. During the war in Afghanistan, he worked alongside units of the U.S. Army Special Forces, including the 3rd Battalion, 3rd Special Forces Group (Airborne), in Paktika province, the advocacy group said.
He and his family were evacuated from Afghanistan by the United States on August 30, 2021, during the U.S. withdrawal from the country, according to AfghanEvac.
“For many years Nazeer worked alongside American forces during the war in Afghanistan. It was dangerous work, but he believed in helping bring stability to his country and protecting the people around him,” his family said.
Paktyawal entered the United States through Washington Dulles International Airport on August 21, 2021, where he was paroled into the country by an immigration officer, according to ICE. His parole authorization expired on August 20, 2025, the agency said in a news release.
After arriving in the United States through the evacuation process, the family was resettled with assistance from Catholic Charities and later applied for asylum, AfghanEvac said.
Paktyawal had completed an asylum interview with U.S. immigration authorities and was living in the United States with work authorization and a Social Security number, according to the advocacy group. The family said he and his relatives had entered the United States through the official evacuation process and were complying with immigration procedures.
Paktyawal is survived by his wife and six children, whose ages range from 15 years to 18 months, according to his family. One of the children is a U.S. citizen.
Paktyawal did not report any prior medical history at the time of arrest and processing, ICE said. He later complained of shortness of breath and chest pains while being held in a processing room at the Dallas Field Office, prompting officers to contact emergency medical services late on March 13, the agency said.
He was transported to Parkland Hospital, where he received breathing treatment, and an emergency room doctor recommended he remain under observation overnight, ICE added.
Medical staff noticed early on March 14 that his tongue had become swollen while he was eating breakfast, prompting an additional medical response at the hospital, the agency said in a news release.
A physician declared him dead at 9:10 a.m. Central time after he had been in immigration custody for about one day, ICE said.
The number of deaths in ICE custody have increased in recent years, with seven in‑custody deaths occurring in 2023, 11 in 2024 and 32 in 2025. At the same time, the number of people held in ICE detention has climbed to historically high levels. The Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse (TRAC) recorded 68,289 people in ICE custody on February 7, 2026. That compares with TRAC snapshots showing about 32,743 in late August 2023 and about 37,782 on January 13, 2024.
Family members and advocacy groups have called for a full, independent investigation into the circumstances surrounding Paktyawal’s death. The family said it is seeking answers about what happened between his detention and his hospitalization.
“We still cannot understand how this happened. He was only 41 years old and was a strong and healthy man. His children keep asking when their father will come home,” the family said.
The statement continued: “Right now our family is trying to comfort six children who have lost their father. We are heartbroken and trying to process this loss.”
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