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When critical care nurses arrived at the hospital, they immediately cast doubt on what federal immigration officials said. minneapolis The hospital has one Mexican Immigrants with facial and skull fractures.
Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents initially claimed that Alberto Castañeda Mondragon tried to escape while handcuffed and “deliberately ran headfirst into a brick wall,” according to court documents filed by an attorney seeking his release.
But three nurses familiar with the case said Hennepin County Medical Center staff believed it was unlikely to explain the 31-year-old patient’s brain fractures and bleeding.
“If there’s anything ridiculous about it, it’s ridiculous,” one nurse told The Associated Press, speaking on condition of anonymity because she was not authorized to discuss patient care. “There’s no way this guy ran into a wall.”
ICE’s explanation is an example of recent clashes between immigration officials and health care workers that have led to growing friction at Minneapolis hospitals. Staff at a Hennepin County medical facility said ICE officers ignored hospital rules and restrained patients, staying with them for days. Agents also roamed campus urging people to provide proof of citizenship.
Since the start of Operation “Subway Surge,” President Donald Trump has minnesotaICE officers have become such regular visitors to hospitals that administrators have issued new protocols for how employees should interact with them. Some employees complained they were so intimidated that they avoided contact with agents while at work and used encrypted communications to prevent any electronic eavesdropping.
Federal agents have conducted similar operations in Los Angeles, Chicago and other cities, with opponents criticizing what they say are overly aggressive tactics. It is unclear how many people have required hospitalization while in detention.
Injuries appear inconsistent with ICE’s account
The Associated Press spoke to a doctor and five nurses working in Ho Chi Minh City who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss Castañeda Mondragon’s case. The AP also consulted an outside doctor, who both determined his injuries were not consistent with an accidental fall or hitting a wall.
ICE’s description of his injuries occurred while federal officers were at his bedside. At least one ICE officer told paramedics that Castañeda Mondragón was “(expletive) shocked” after she was arrested on Jan. 8 near a St. Paul mall, court documents and a hospital worker said. His arrest came a day after two fatal shootings involving immigration officers in Minneapolis.
The situation came to a head when ICE insisted on handcuffing his ankles to the bed, leading to a violent confrontation with hospital staff, according to court records and hospital staff familiar with the incident.
A nurse said Castañeda Mondragon was delirious at the time and did not know what year it was or how she was injured. ICE officials believe he was trying to escape after he stood up and took a few steps.
“We’re basically trying to explain to ICE that this is what people with traumatic brain injuries do — they’re impulsive,” the nurse said. “We didn’t think he was going to run toward the door.”
Security guards arrived on the scene, followed by the hospital’s CEO and attorneys, who gathered in the doctor’s office to discuss their options for dealing with ICE, the nurse said.
“We finally came to an agreement with ICE to have a nursing assistant sit with the patient to prevent him from leaving,” the nurse said. “After a while, they agreed to remove the handcuffs.”
this Department of Homeland SecurityAgencies, including ICE, did not respond to repeated requests for comment on Castañeda Mondragon’s injuries. A deportation officer sidestepped the issue in court documents, saying that during the intake process at an ICE detention center, it was determined that he had a “head injury requiring emergency medical treatment.”
Gregorio Castañeda Mondragon said his brother was a roofer from Veracruz, Mexico. He has a 10-year-old daughter who lives in his hometown where he helps support her.
According to his attorney, Alberto Castañeda Mondragón entered the United States in 2022 with valid immigration documents. Minnesota corporate filings show he founded a company called Castañeda Mondragón the following year, with an address listed in Sao Paulo.
He does not appear to have a criminal record. Castañeda Mondragon was racially profiled during the crackdown and officials only determined he had overstayed his visa after his arrest, his lawyer told the court.
“He is a brown-skinned, Latino Spanish-speaking individual who resides in a location arbitrarily determined by USCIS to be targeted,” his attorneys wrote in a petition.
Immigrant suffered eight skull fractures hours after arrest
Castañeda Mondragon was initially transported to an ICE processing center on the edge of Minneapolis. Court records include a warrant for his arrest signed by an ICE officer, not an immigration judge, upon his arrival.
About four hours after his arrest, he was rushed to a hospital emergency room in suburban Edina with swelling, bruising and bleeding around his right eye. CT scans showed he had at least eight skull fractures and life-threatening bleeding in at least five areas of his brain, court documents said. He was later transferred to Ho Chi Minh City.
Castañeda Mondragon was alert and talking and told staff he was “dragged and abused by federal agents,” although his condition quickly deteriorated, documents show.
The following week, a Jan. 16 court filing said he had poor reflexes and communication skills, was disoriented and was heavily sedated.
The Associated Press shared details of Castañeda Mondragón’s injuries with Dr. Lindsey C. Thomas. Lindsey C. Thomas is a board-certified forensic pathologist who has served as a medical examiner in Minnesota for more than 30 years. She agreed with the hospital staff’s assessment.
“I’m pretty sure a person wouldn’t suffer this serious injury from running into a wall,” Thomas said, adding that she would need to see a CT scan to make a more definite finding.
“I almost think you don’t have to be a doctor to conclude that a person wouldn’t have fractured their skull on both sides and front to back from hitting a wall,” she said.
ICE officers spend days with hospitalized detainees
ICE officers bring seriously injured detainees into hospitals and stay at their bedsides day after day, staff said. The crackdown has unsettled hospital employees, who say ICE agents have been seen roaming the premises demanding proof of citizenship from patients and staff.
Hospital staff said they were uncomfortable with the presence of armed agents who they distrusted and appeared to be untrained.
Nurses who spoke to The Associated Press said they were intimidated by ICE’s presence in intensive care units and were even told to avoid certain bathrooms to minimize contact with police. They said workers were using encrypted messaging apps to exchange notes and share information because they feared the government might spy on their communications.
The hospital reminds employees that ICE officers are not allowed to have access to patients or protected information without a search warrant or court order.
“patient “Under federal supervision, the patient comes first,” hospital officials wrote in an announcement outlining the new protocol. The hospital’s written policy also states that handcuffs or other restraints should not be used unless medically necessary.
“We have our policies, but ICE personnel who are federal officials don’t necessarily follow those policies, and that creates tensions,” said one doctor who spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to comment on behalf of the hospital.
Alisa Harris, a hospital spokesperson, said ICE agents “have not yet entered our facilities to search for individuals.”
On Saturday, a U.S. District Court judge ordered Castañeda Mondragón to be released from ICE custody more than two weeks after his arrest.
“We are encouraged by the court’s order, which affirms that the rule of law applies to everyone in every corner of our country, including federal officials,” said Jeanette Boerner, director of Hennepin County Adult Representative Services, which filed the lawsuit on Castañeda Mondragon’s behalf.
To the surprise of some who treated him, Castañeda Mondragon was released from the hospital on Tuesday. A hospital spokesperson said she had no information about him.
The Justice Department filed court documents this week confirming that Castañeda Mondragon is no longer in custody. Prosecutors did not respond to a request for comment on the man’s injuries.
Castañeda Mondragon had no family in Minnesota and a co-worker took him in, his brother said. He suffered severe memory loss and it will take a long time to recover. He won’t be able to work for the foreseeable future, and his friends and family are worried about paying for his care.
“He still doesn’t remember what happened. I think (he remembers) 20 percent of 100 percent of what he remembers,” said Gregorio Castañeda Mondragón, who lives in Mexico. “Sadly, instead of having a good memory of America, you get a bad impression of this country because they treat them like animals.”
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Mustian reported from New York and Bizek reported from Washington.
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Associated Press reporters Steve Karnofsky and Sarah Raza in Minneapolis, Valerie Gonzalez in McAllen, Texas, and Joshua Goodman in Miami contributed.