{"id":88565,"date":"2026-01-16T14:33:08","date_gmt":"2026-01-16T14:33:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/88565\/"},"modified":"2026-01-16T14:33:08","modified_gmt":"2026-01-16T14:33:08","slug":"upper-darby-man-went-out-for-groceries-days-later-he-was-dead-in-ice-custody","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/88565\/","title":{"rendered":"Upper Darby Man Went Out for Groceries, Days Later He Was Dead in ICE Custody"},"content":{"rendered":"

Before he vanished, 46-year-old Parady La had asked a cousin if she needed anything from the grocery store. But a few hours later, his car was found abandoned on the side of the road. By the end of the week, the Upper Darby man was dead after collapsing in a federal detention cell while in U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE<\/a>) custody.<\/p>\n

His family and friends have now gathered in Upper Darby to remember La. They are mourning a man they describe as stylish and devoted, as they demand answers from ICE as it insists it followed protocol.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe was like a father figure to me,\u201d his nephew Michael La told WHYY<\/a>.<\/p>\n

They had spent summers in Philadelphia, where La used to press ice cream money into kids\u2019 hands when the Mister Softee truck rolled by. Michael explained that Parady La had even driven two hours to pick him up while he helped his family after a divorce.<\/p>\n

Death of Cambodian American in ICE Custody Triggers Outrage, Allegations of Neglect<\/p>\n

Phnom Penh \/ Philadelphia \u2014 The death of a 46-year-old Cambodian American man while in U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) custody has sparked widespread anger, with family members and\u2026 pic.twitter.com\/PuCnM7TCY6<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 PsychxnauT \ud83d\udc7d (@P3ychxnauT) January 15, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n

According to his family, La was detained by ICE on January 6, 2026, after agents pulled him over and asked for his ID. Relatives had been searching for him for hours before they learned he was in custody. Two days later, Michael got a call telling him his uncle was in the hospital and was brain-dead.<\/p>\n

ICE, however, says that La was being held at the Federal Detention Center in Philadelphia and was being treated for drug withdrawal. Officers found him unresponsive in his cell on January 7, so they administered CPR and multiple doses of naloxone (specifically Narcan) before rushing him to Thomas Jefferson University Hospital.<\/p>\n

He was pronounced dead the morning of January 9.<\/p>\n

For his family, that explanation is questionable. They say La told officers he was going through fentanyl withdrawal and kept requesting care after vomiting. So, it is raising questions about why naloxone was administered if withdrawal was the issue. \u201cAs we keep fighting for information, we\u2019re finding that there are levels of information that just become locked,\u201d Michael said.<\/p>\n

The family has also set up a GoFundMe<\/a> to help with funeral costs and to support La\u2019s 23-year-old daughter, Jazmine. The donations will also fund legal action against ICE and the Philadelphia detention facility where the man died.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

Just heard about this man Paraday La who died in ICE custody because they refused to get him medical treatment when he was going through withdrawal. It\u2019s so sad. And he probably isn\u2019t the first this has happened to.<\/p>\n

\u2014 Scaredy Cat (@hello_jaime) January 14, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n

Advocacy groups like the Shut Down Detention Campaign called La\u2019s death \u201ccompletely preventable\u201d as they spoke of the medical neglect and delayed care. ICE maintains that medical care is provided to all detainees and that emergency care is never denied, either. La is the fourth person to die in custody at a Pennsylvania detention center since December 2023.<\/p>\n

Nationwide, 32 people died in ICE custody<\/a> in 2025.<\/p>\n

La was born in a refugee camp in Thailand and came to Philadelphia at age two after his family fled the Cambodian genocide. ICE describes him as a \u201ccriminal illegal alien,\u201d and notes that his misdemeanor convictions and the loss of his legal status were why they targeted him. His family acknowledges his habits and that they worsened after the 2005 murder of his younger brother.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cHe was an American,\u201d Michael said. \u201cAnd he was failed.\u201d<\/p>\n