ICE releases Gravesend man whose
relative was shot during his arrest
BY ROSE ADAMS
A Gravesend man whose
girlfriend’s son was shot in the
face when border agents arrested
him in February was
released from ICE custody on
April 1.
A federal judge ordered
Immigration and Customs
Enforcement to release Gaspar
Avendano-Hernandez,
33, from the Hudson County
jail on April 1 in response to
the uptick in COVID-19 cases
at the facility, authorities announced.
The order comes as a win
for detainees and immigrant
rights activists, who have
fought for the inmates’ release,
particularly as COVID-19 ravages
detention centers. About
300 inmates and staffers across
city jails have contracted the
virus so far. New Jersey’s four
ICE detention centers have
seven confi rmed cases, according
to the federal agency.
On Feb. 6, an ICE agent shot
the son of Avendano-Hernandez’s
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longtime girlfriend in the
face while trying to arrest Avendano
Hernandez — sparking
national outcry.
Border patrol agents arrived
at Avendano-Hernandez’s
W. 12th Street home at
around 8:15 am to arrest the
33-year-old Mexican man before
26-year-old Erick Diaz-
Cruz intervened. An ICE agent
fi red at him, striking his hand
and his cheek.
Paramedics rushed Diaz-
Cruz to Maimonides Medical
Center, where he underwent
two surgeries and was released
six days later, his family said.
Diaz-Cruz has since fi led a lawsuit
in the Eastern District of
New York to seek damages for
the shooting, which lodged a
bullet in his neck for life and
caused vision loss in his left
eye, among other injuries, the
complaint said.
Diaz-Cruz has legal immigration
papers, according to
the Consulate General of Mexico
in New York, while Avendano
Hernandez is allegedly
undocumented. In a statement,
ICE claimed that the suspect is
“a twice-removed illegal alien
from Mexico with a 2011 assault
conviction in New York
City” who they arrested because
of a recent traffi c stop.
Following the shooting, activists
gathered outside Maimonides
Medical Center to
denounce ICE, and on Feb. 16,
supporters held a candlelight
vigil near the family’s Gravesend
home in solidarity with
Avendano-Hernandez and
Diaz-Cruz.
Avendano-Hernandez is
one of several inmates who has
been released from ICE’s custody
because of the COVID-19
pandemic. On March 26, a
judge ordered that ICE release
10 detainees from New
Jersey jails with underlying
conditions, and immigration
attorneys and advocates say
they will continue working towards
inmates’ release.
“We are deeply grateful that
the federal court intervened to
order Gaspar’s release, and we
hope that more courts – and
the public – will continue to
pressure ICE until it frees everyone
in its custody,” said
Alina Das, co-director of the
Immigrant Rights Clinic and
one of Avendano-Hernandez’s
attorneys.
Avendano-Hernandez will
remain back home in Gravesend
for the duration of his
pending federal immigration
case, activists said.
A man whose relative was shot by a border agent during his Feb. 6 arrest
has been released.. Photo by Todd Maisel
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