ICE Confronts Questions After Afghan Father of 6 Dies Hours After Texas Arrest

An Afghan father who worked alongside U.S. forces during the war in Afghanistan died less than 24 hours after being detained by federal immigration agents in Texas, raising urgent questions about what happened in custody.

Mohommad Nazeer Paktyawal, 41, was arrested Friday outside his apartment in Richardson while taking his children to school, according to Reuters and the Associated Press. He died Saturday at Parkland Hospital in Dallas after reporting chest pain and breathing problems while in ICE custody.

ICE said medical staff responded when his tongue began swelling during breakfast and attempted resuscitation before he was pronounced dead. The agency said the case remains under investigation.

Paktyawal had been evacuated to the United States in 2021 after working with U.S. special forces and was living in Texas with his wife and six children while his asylum case was pending.

Advocacy group AfghanEvac says his sudden death is deeply suspicious and has called for an immediate investigation, saying it is “highly unusual” for a healthy 41-year-old man to die so soon after entering federal custody.

The death is among a growing number reported in ICE detention this year.

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