Lawmakers are demanding an investigation after a man from Haiti who was seeking asylum in Massachusetts died in the custody of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
Emmanuel Damas, 56, of Dorchester, died March 2 at a hospital in Arizona. He was taken into ICE custody in Boston in September 2025, following an arrest for assault and battery by Boston Police, according to ICE.
“He’s not a criminal. He didn’t do anything,” said Damas’ brother Presner Nelson. He said that Damas was in the country legally.
Presly Nelson
Last month, Damas told staff there he had a bad toothache; it got worse, and he was taken to the hospital on Feb. 19, according to his brother, Presly Nelson. ICE said that Damas reported shortness of breath and the agency’s statement did not mention a toothache. The next day, Nelson said Damas was on life support in intensive care with pneumonia. On Feb. 23, Nelson said ICE told him Damas was back at the detention center in Florence, but there was no update on his condition.
Several days later, Nelson learned that his brother was at a different hospital and was scheduled to have surgery on Feb. 26. Presner Nelson said that the family arrived to find that their brother was in a coma with no chance of recovery. Damas died on Monday, March 2. It’s still not clear what caused his death.
“This is the United States of America, the biggest country on Earth, where we do big things. To let someone pass because of a tooth infection, toothache? It’s sad,” said Presner.
A statement released by ICE on Friday included a detailed timeline of nearly two weeks of Damas’ medical care. It also contradicts the family’s claim that he was returned to a detention center while he was sick.
“ICE is committed to ensuring that all those in custody reside in safe, secure and humane environments. Comprehensive medical care is provided from the moment individuals arrive and throughout the entirety of their stay. All people in ICE custody receive medical, dental and mental health intake screenings within 12 hours of arriving at each detention facility; a full health assessment within 14 days of entering ICE custody or arrival at a facility; access to medical appointments; and 24-hour emergency care. At no time during detention is a detained alien denied emergency care,” ICE said in the statement.
On Thursday, Massachusetts Senators Elizabeth Warren and Ed Markey and Rep. Ayanna Pressley wrote a letter to the heads of Homeland Security and ICE demanding answers.
“ICE’s failure to provide timely medical care to Mr. Damas appears to have contributed to his worsening medical condition and tragic death,” they wrote. “Mr. Damas’s family has alleged that ICE failed to provide Mr. Damas with timely medical care, allowing an untreated toothache to become a deadly infection.”
In their letter, Pressley, Markey and Warren said Damas’s death was “highly preventable” and the case “raises serious questions regarding ICE’s ability to timely treat and care for individuals it detains.”
Pressley said Damas is at least the 10th person to die in ICE custody this year.
“No other family should go through what we are going through. I hope he’s the last one,” Presner said.
