A man arrested by ICE ended up with severe head injuries, but the exact cause of these injuries is still a mystery.
Alberto Castañeda Mondragón, a Mexican immigrant, was taken into custody on January 8 and subsequently hospitalized in Minnesota with significant facial and skull fractures.
Hours after his arrest, ICE agents transported Castañeda Mondragón to a hospital for immediate medical care. A CT scan revealed he had at least eight skull fractures and life-threatening brain hemorrhages in five different areas, according to court documents.
Once transferred to Hennepin County Medical Center (HCMC), ICE officials informed the staff that Castañeda Mondragón, aged 31, had sustained his injuries by intentionally running ‘headfirst into a brick wall’ while attempting to escape.
However, hospital staff at HCMC reportedly doubted this explanation. One nurse referred to this account as ‘laughable.’
A nurse with knowledge of the situation told The Associated Press (AP): “It was laughable, if there was something to laugh about.”
They continued: “There was no way this person ran headfirst into a wall.”
Reports suggest tensions arose between hospital personnel and ICE officers when the latter insisted on restraining Castañeda Mondragón’s ankles to the bed with handcuffs.
Having entered the United States in 2022 with proper immigration documentation, the Mexican immigrant was conscious but unable to remember how he received his injuries.
He was reportedly so confused that he could not even tell the hospital staff the current year.
The decision to shackle him to his bed followed Castañeda Mondragón’s attempt to get up and take a few steps. ICE interpreted this as an escape attempt, while the nurses disagreed.
“We were basically trying to explain to ICE that this is how someone with a traumatic brain injury is – they’re impulsive,” one nurse explained to AP. “We didn’t think he was making a run for the door.”
Elaborating on the agreed-upon solution, they added: “We eventually agreed with ICE that we would have a nursing assistant sit with the patient to prevent him from leaving.
“They agreed a little while later to take the shackles off.”
The incident involving Castañeda Mondragón is gaining attention following a lawyer’s court filing advocating for his release.
His legal team argues that their client was ‘racially profiled during the crackdown, and that officers determined only after his arrest that he had overstayed his visa’, according to reports from AP.
Requests for comments from ICE have been made.