Washington: A new report by Human Rights Watch (HRW) has exposed degrading, dehumanising, and medically negligent treatment of immigration detainees in Florida under the Trump administration’s stringent policies. The report spotlights the distressing case of Harpinder Singh Chauhan, a 56-year-old British entrepreneur of Indian origin, who endured mistreatment while held in US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) custody.
Chauhan, who had resided in the United States since 2016 on an investor visa, operating several small businesses in Florida and with a pending green card petition, was detained by ICE officers on February 11th over tax issues linked to a failed franchise.
The report details a litany of abuses: Chauhan was allegedly denied critical medications, including insulin for diabetes and an inhaler for asthma. Following his arrest, he was shackled for seven hours in a transport van before being confined for nearly four days in freezing, overcrowded holding cells at Krome Detention Centre, lacking beds or showers. Over the subsequent month, Chauhan was transferred between three facilities, according to the report, his health consistently worsened. At Krome, amid a tuberculosis outbreak, he contracted a respiratory illness.
At FDC, officers reportedly threatened him and denied him a cell with working plumbing. Upon collapsing at BTC, he was hospitalised for suspected cardiac distress; yet, his son Aaron was unable to locate him for days due to ICE’s refusal to release information, even as the hospital listed him under an alias. He was eventually deported to the UK in June, weeks after a judge ordered his removal, a delay attributed to ICE’s mishandling of documents.
HRW warns that Chauhan’s experience is emblematic of broader patterns of abuse and negligence, exacerbated by overcrowding and punitive detention policies implemented under Executive Order 14159.
Indian Subjected To Degrading Treatment In ICE Custody
WASHINGTON, DC — Immigration detainees in Florida have faced degrading, dehumanizing, andmedically negligent treatment under the Trump administration’s harsh immigration policies, Human Rights Watch said in a new report on July 21.
Among the individuals spotlighted is Harpinder Singh Chauhan, a 56-year-old British entrepreneur of Indian origin, who endured months of mistreatment while in U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) custody.
Chauhan, who had lived in the United States since 2016 on an investor visa, ran several small businesses in Florida and had a pending EB-5 green card petition. Despite his legal presence, he was detained by ICE officers on February 11 over tax issues stemming from a failed franchise and held without clear justification.
Human Rights Watch said Chauhan was denied critical medications, including insulin for diabetes and an inhaler for asthma. After arrest, he was shackled for seven hours in a transport van and then confined for nearly four days in freezing, overcrowded holding cells at Krome Detention Center with no beds or showers. “I used my shoes as a pillow,” he told Human Rights Watch.
Over the following month, Chauhan was transferred between three facilities—Krome, FDC, and BTC. At each, according to the report, he suffered worsening health conditions. In Krome, amid a tuberculosis outbreak, he contracted a respiratory illness. At FDC, officers threatened him and denied him a cell with working plumbing. At BTC, after collapsing in a dinner line, he was hospitalized for suspected cardiac distress—but his son Aaron was unable to locate him for days due to ICE’s refusal to release information, even as the hospital listed him under the alias “Hank Campbell.”
Human Rights Watch reported that staff mocked Chauhan’s name, delayed medical care, and failed to return personal belongings, including his passport. Chauhan was finally deported in June, weeks after a judge ordered his removal to the UK, due to ICE’s mishandling of documents. This case, Human Rights Watch warned, reflects broader patterns of abuse and negligence exacerbated by overcrowding and punitive detention policies under Executive Order 14159.
