A kidney transplant recipient in Minnesota who was arrested by ICE has been denied access to life-saving medication for more than four days, according to his wife.
Carolina Rosario De Abreu told MPR News on Sunday that she had spoken on the phone with her husband, Javier Abreu-Vasquez, who said he has not been given his medication since he was brought into custody on Thursday.
Rosario De Abreu said her husband needs to take his anti-rejection pills every day in order to survive his kidney transplant.
Abreu-Vasquez, 38, was picked up by ICE agents in Rochester, Minnesota, while he was delivering groceries for a local mutual aid network through his church. Witnesses said his car “was rammed and a window was broken” when he was detained, The Post Bulletin reported.
There are ongoing calls to end the immigration raids in Minneapolis after two U.S. citizens were shot by federal immigration agents. Stephen Maturen/Getty Images
State Rep. Kim Hicks told The Post Bulletin on Friday that she delivered Abreu-Vasquez’s anti-rejection pills to the Whipple federal building, where he was being held. However, she said a lawyer for Abreu-Vasquez was told that in order to receive his medication, he would need a doctor’s note.
After his family sent a note from his doctor at the Mayo Clinic, where he had his kidney transplant surgery in July 2023, Hicks said that his family was told by federal officials he was already receiving his needed medication.
Abreu-Vasquez also told his family he was being transferred to a federal detention facility in Texas the next day, according to The Post Bulletin.
The Department of Homeland Security released a statement late Friday afternoon addressing Abreu-Vasquez’s situation, according to MPR News.
Assistant DHS Secretary Tricia McLaughlin. Mikaela McGee/DHS
“ICE is aware of his recent kidney transplant, and his family sent the medications and medical documentation,” DHS assistant press secretary Tricia McLaughlin said in the statement. “ICE is working with the family to ensure he gets all of his needed medications.”
“It is a longstanding practice to provide comprehensive medical care from the moment an alien enters ICE custody,” the statement continues. “This is the best healthcare many aliens have received in their entire lives.”
When asked for an update on whether Abreu-Vasquez has received his medication since their Friday statement, DHS provided the Daily Beast with the same statement from Friday without answering the question.
Hicks told MPR News that Abreu-Vasquez was in the U.S. legally, saying he has an alien registration number, which serves as a permanent immigration ID for non-citizens.
Thousands have demonstrated peacefully against ICE’s aggressive deportation policies since the DHS crackdown began last year. Anadolu/Anadolu via Getty Images
“I don’t understand why the federal government is taking Minnesotans who are not criminals, who are part of our communities, and violently ripping them off the streets after running into their cars, and then denying them access to life-saving medication,” Hicks said.
“For what purpose? What is the end goal here?” she added. “This is not the worst of the worst.”
The Daily Beast reached out to Hicks for comment and an update on Abreu-Vasquez’s status.