An Afghan nationwide who fought alongside U.S. forces died from an allergic response whereas within the custody of Immigration and Customs Enforcement, at some point after he used to be detained for deportation proceedings, his death certificates shows.
Mohammad Nazeer Paktiawal, 41, suffered “an detrimental drug response” to an unidentified substance, which brought about anaphylaxis and exacerbated his asthma, in step with the file. His March 14 death at a Dallas health facility used to be ruled to be an accident.
Paktiawal’s surprising death in ICE custody has drawn outrage on myth of he had risked his existence battling as an ally of U.S. Particular Forces in Afghanistan for a decade.
Out of bigger than 50 ICE detention deaths at some stage in President Donald Trump’s 2d time frame, Paktiawal’s is the critical to be ruled an accident, in step with monitoring by The Connected Press. Quite so a lot of the others maintain been blamed on natural causes or suicide.
An advocacy community, AfghanEvac, and two members of Congress on Monday known as on Texas authorities to begin his autopsy file, which they’ve sought to take care of by arguing its disclosure would intervene with a pending criminal investigation.
“This family has a honest to take hang of what passed off,” acknowledged Shawn VanDiver, president of AfghanEvac. He requested authorities to existing what substance brought about the allergic response, how it obtained into his system and why the date of the hurt on the death certificates used to be listed because the day sooner than Paktiawal used to be taken into custody. “What’s taking place right here smacks of a quilt-up,” added Sen. Richard Blumenthal, a Connecticut Democrat who acknowledged he would demand the Department of Fatherland Safety to begin the autopsy. Paktiawal used to be evacuated with thousands of others from Afghanistan when U.S. troops pulled out in 2021. He entered the U.S. by an right course of and requested asylum to take care of. That claim used to be pending when ICE arrested him at his home in Richardson, Texas, on March 13 as he used to be getting some of his six kids ready for faculty. ICE has defended its resolution to heart of attention on Paktiawal for deportation, noting he had been arrested on meals attach fraud and theft expenses. He had no longer been convicted in both case. ICE did no longer reply to questions Monday, referring to its beforehand launched file on Paktiawal’s death, which acknowledged he used to be screened at its Dallas field protest of commercial and denied any scientific stipulations or allergic response indicators. Hours later, he began experiencing shortness of breath and chest trouble in a keeping room and used to be taken to Parkland Memorial Health facility. The following morning, health facility crew eminent swelling of his tongue whereas he used to be drinking breakfast and gave him epinephrine, a drug that treats allergic reactions. He used to be pronounced slow about 40 minutes later after lifesaving measures maintain been unsuccessful. The certificates lists the reason within the inspire of death as “anaphylaxis complicating acute asthma exacerbation.” Anaphylaxis is a extreme allergic response typically attributable to meals, pills or insect venom. The file lists the toxic results of methamphetamine, coronary heart illness and cigarette smoking as contributing factors. Relatives acknowledged they did no longer know Paktiawal to use meth, and a 2d autopsy performed for the family would possibly per chance per chance no longer verify whether or no longer he had meth in his system on myth of no blood remained for sorting out, VanDiver acknowledged. His wife has acknowledged that he relied on an inhaler for asthma, but ICE brokers rejected her try and present them the machine when he used to be taken into custody. “What accident are they talking about?” Paktiawal’s youthful brother, Naseer Paktiawal, requested Monday. “We merely desire the truth.” Naseer remembered his brother as a obvious forces soldier who fought within the most unpleasant substances of Afghanistan. After settling within the U.S., Paktiawal grew to develop into a truck driver and worked at a market and bakery, laboring lengthy hours to enhance his family, his brother acknowledged. The trigger and system of death maintain been established by the Dallas County Medical Examiner’s Office after an autopsy. County authorities maintain refused to begin the file, citing statements from ICE officers that doing so would intervene with a federal investigation into the death. They maintain requested Texas Attorney Fashioned Ken Paxton’s protest of commercial for permission to take care of the legend below a “laws enforcement exception” to the protest’s open records laws. In keeping with the AP’s demand for the file, Dallas County reliable Jennifer Rose wrote that “its begin would intervene with the detection, investigation, and prosecution of against the law.” Paxton’s protest of commercial hasn’t ruled on the matter. It beforehand granted a the same demand from one other Texas county to take care of the autopsy file of a Vietnamese man who died in ICE custody in July 2025, records existing.
