Shah Alam had been in the Erie County Holding Center since February 2025 after being arrested by Buffalo police. On February 15 last year, he had been out for a walk in his neighborhood and had been using a curtain rod he purchased as a walking stick.
Nearly blind and with no ability to speak English, Shah Alam got lost and ended up on the porch of a woman’s home as she was letting her dog out, according to Macaluso. Shah Alam is completely blind in one eye and can only see with blurry vision for several feet in the other, according to Macaluso.
The woman called police, Macaluso said. When Shah Alam did not follow police commands to drop his curtain rod, they Tasered and beat him, then arrested him, Macaluso said. The officers suffered minor injuries in the scuffle, he said.
A spokesperson for Border Patrol, in a statement Wednesday evening, said after agents determined Shah Alam was not supposed to be in their custody, they “offered him a courtesy ride, which he chose to accept to a coffee shop.” That Tim Hortons, the spokesperson said, was “determined to be a warm, safe location near his last known address, rather than be released directly from the Border Patrol station.”
Agents, however, did not notify Macaluso or Shah Alam’s family of his release to the coffee shop. Macaluso previously told Investigative Post he expected Shah Alam to be taken to the ICE detention center in Batavia and that his client would be released from there.
They tasered him, beat him, but then we report that the officers suffered minor injuries
FUCK the officers, I’m sure they’re fine after assaulting an old blind guy with a curtain rod in his hands, how was he after that assault?
I’m all for neutrality in reporting but this isn’t it. This is focussing on the grave injuries of the poor police officers who bravely sacrificed themselves against the scour that is a blind old man. Fuck that shit, those police officers should all be arrested and jailed yet here I am reading about how they had a boo-boo on their body after an assault with weapon.
I’m really trying not to rage here
If a cop manages to get injured in a situation like that it’s 100% on them for either being too incompetent and/or too aggressive. They probably got a bruise while slamming him to the ground.
Also the curtain rod he had was because he didnt have a dedicated cane for blind people. The ones they use to make sure they dont walk into a wall or trip on something.
Given the police track record, they probably hurt each other in their zealous bloodlust to inflict violence on someone who was fairly defenceless.
They’re reporting on statements made by the victim’s lawyer. In this case I think the neutral way to report it is to relay those statements without omitting anything substantial.