Human Impact Project

Dannick Massamba-Bankela, a corrections officer at the Cumberland County Jail, was detained by ICE agents after a scheduled appointment at the agency's Scarborough office. He came to the United States from the Republic of Congo in 2023, applied for asylum within three months, and held work authorization with no criminal record. He previously worked as a transportation coordinator for a Portland assisted-living facility and is the sole breadwinner for his wife and two young children, whom he told he loved before the appointment; a friend said she arranged him a ride that morning after spotting immigration officers near his home. His attorney, Christina Corbaci, said he entered legally on a visa and has a pending asylum claim, but ICE cited a visa overstay; she called him courageous, said he anticipated the detention, and plans to seek a bond hearing. He is being held at the Plymouth County Correctional Facility in Massachusetts and is the fifth known Cumberland County corrections officer detained by ICE, following the detentions of Nilton Ribeiro of Angola and a York County corrections officer. Friends and immigrant rights advocates gathered outside the facility in support.

Adnero Pinto Sebastiao, an Angolan national with a pending asylum application, was arrested by ICE agents as he returned from lunch to his job at a bank in the Lewiston area. He had entered the U.S. legally on a tourist visa in March 2024 before applying for asylum, and his immigration case remains pending. His attorneys filed a petition for a writ of habeas corpus arguing the detention was an unlawful warrantless arrest lacking individualized assessment. A federal judge issued an indefinite injunction barring ICE from removing him from the U.S. or transferring him out of the District of Maine, and ordered the government to justify the detention. A DHS spokesperson said Sebastiao overstayed his visa and that a pending asylum application does not confer legal status.

Bill Bassikissa Bounguiena, a Cumberland County corrections officer, was detained by ICE in South Portland in June 2026. The Sheriff's Office said he had been hired in August 2024, had no discipline issues, and 'demonstrated dedication to his duties' by often working overtime. He held an employment authorization document confirming he could legally work in the U.S. until 2030, and the Sheriff's Office said it had no further information on why ICE detained him.

Corrections Officer Bill Bassikissa Bounguiena was detained by ICE in South Portland in June 2026. The Cumberland County Sheriff's Office said he had been hired in August 2024, had no discipline issues, and 'demonstrated dedication to his duties' by often working overtime. He held an employment authorization document confirming he could legally work in the United States until 2030, and the Sheriff's Office said it had no additional information about why ICE detained him.

Nilton Ribeiro, a corrections officer at the Cumberland County Jail in Maine since 2023, was arrested by ICE agents on August 22, 2026, during a targeted enforcement operation. He is originally from Angola and entered the U.S. in September 2022 with permission to stay until March 2023, but DHS said he remained after that date expired. Sheriff Kevin Joyce called him 'a very good employee' and 'a very good corrections officer' who passed a rigorous hiring process, including a background check, polygraph test, and I-9 verification. Jail administrator Timothy Kortes said he was a satisfactory employee who met job expectations and had notified the jail of an immigration issue before missing work. Ribeiro remains in ICE custody pending removal proceedings and is at least the fourth Cumberland County Jail corrections officer detained by ICE in the past 16 months.

ICE agents detained a Cambodian man Tuesday morning while he was working at Veranda Asian Market in Woodfords Corner, Portland, Maine. His name has not been publicly released, but Khmer Maine, a nonprofit in contact with him, described him as "quiet, kind and a hard worker." Marpheen Chann, executive director of Khmer Maine, said the arrest has sparked fear in local Asian immigrant communities and is "hurting Maine's local economy and making our communities feel less safe." Khmer Maine says it is working with his family and immigration advocates to ensure transparency. ICE has not released statistics on its recent operations in Maine, though national ICE detention numbers reached a record high of more than 65,000 last month.

Marcos Gaspar-Da Silva, a general contractor and former attorney from Brazil living in Bridgton, Maine, was detained by ICE on January 20 after being pulled over in Portland during an enforcement operation. He had a pending asylum case, no criminal record, and a marriage-based green card petition filed by his U.S. citizen wife, Alessia. Over nearly seven months in custody, he was transferred through facilities in Massachusetts, Louisiana and Arizona, where he and his wife described overcrowding, unsanitary conditions and inadequate medical care, including going untreated for a toothache until the tooth was pulled and losing more than 26 pounds. U.S. Rep. Chellie Pingree's staff supported Alessia and helped expedite his petition while pressing officials about his medical care. In August, an immigration judge granted him adjustment of status to lawful permanent resident through his wife's petition, and he was released on August 13, reuniting with his wife and 11-year-old daughter, though he described lasting emotional numbness and difficulty eating and sleeping.

The Maine Immigrants' Rights Coalition reported that ICE agents have arrested at least five people at Portland International Jetport in recent weeks, with detentions occurring during passenger check-in and boarding. A Portland city spokesperson said TSA officials announced at an Aug. 5 meeting with airline and Jetport personnel that ICE activity was being planned for airports including Portland. DHS defended information sharing between ICE and TSA as essential for identifying travelers, while coalition advocacy director Ruben Torres said he believes the airport arrests are aimed at increasing overall arrest numbers rather than public safety. The coalition has warned some immigrants with uncertain status to speak with an attorney before traveling by air.

Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents arrested a husband and wife outside the Cumberland County courthouse in Portland after they left the building on Tuesday, in what ICE described as a "targeted enforcement operation." According to ICE, both are from African countries and had entered the U.S. legally approximately 10 years ago but overstayed their authorized periods of stay. Court records show one of the two had been indicted earlier this year on a theft charge for allegedly taking items from a Walmart in late 2025 and early 2026, and was scheduled to be arraigned that afternoon. The Maine Immigrants' Rights Coalition said the arrests, captured on video, were the first it was aware of occurring outside the Cumberland County courthouse; officials confirmed ICE agents had been inside the courthouse that morning reviewing the public docket, though the arrests themselves occurred off courthouse property and local police said they had not been notified beforehand.

Domingo Tot Quip, a 31-year-old Portland resident from Guatemala and restaurant worker, was arrested at a bus stop in January 2026 during an ICE enforcement operation while heading to work. ICE agents mistakenly identified him as another Guatemalan man with the same first name and birthday who had a final removal order, despite Tot Quip having valid identification documents with him at the time of arrest. He spoke primarily an indigenous Guatemalan language, had no criminal history, and had never interacted with ICE before. A federal judge ordered ICE not to remove him from the country, but Tot Quip was deported to Guatemala one day after the order. His attorney, Kerry Doyle, alleged racial profiling was involved in the misidentification. After months in Guatemala, ICE acknowledged "the gravity of the inadvertent removal" in court records and agreed to return Tot Quip to the U.S. at government expense, with his return to Maine expected in August 2026.

Debora Kapisha, a Maine Medical Center nurse originally from Zambia, was taken into ICE custody at Portland International Jetport on July 30 after an agent told her she needed a luggage inspection in a separate room, where immigration agents were waiting, according to her attorney Kerry Doyle. ICE has accused her of overstaying a visa that expired in November 2024, though she has a pending asylum claim and, according to the Maine State Nurses Association, is legally authorized to work in the U.S. After she challenged her detention in federal court, Kapisha was ordered released from ICE custody last week, though her removal case continues. Her colleagues protested her detention, and Maine immigrant advocates say at least five people have been detained at the jetport in the past two weeks amid a nationwide increase in airport immigration enforcement.

Johan Sebastián Durán Guerrero, a 25- or 26-year-old Colombian national with legal work authorization, was fatally shot by ICE officer David Brouillette on July 13, 2026, during a mistaken traffic stop near a laundromat in Biddeford, Maine. He was working an early-morning DoorDash delivery shift when agents conducting surveillance on a different address approached his vehicle and fired five shots through the windshield, with his 3-year-old daughter witnessing the shooting. DHS said the vehicle attempted to flee and the officer fired fearing for public safety, a claim disputed by witnesses; Sen. Angus King said Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin confirmed Guerrero was not the intended target. He lived with his partner Karolina Rojas and also worked as a veterinary clinic cleaner; she described him as 'a hard worker devoted to his family' who 'always dreamed big' for their daughter. His death prompted hundreds of protesters to gather and led to inquiries by the Maine Attorney General's Office, the FBI, and the DHS Office of Inspector General, with Democratic lawmakers, including Congressman Bennie Thompson, calling for an investigation into the officer's hiring history.

ICE agents fatally shot Johan Sebastián Durán Guerrero, a Colombian man, outside the agency's immigration facility in Maine in July 2026. His partner, Karolina Rojas, described him as a loving, hardworking father who did everything to make her and their daughter happy. Relatives say the ICE officer who shot him has a history of serious mental health struggles dating to childhood. In response, community ICE-watch groups across Maine have ramped up efforts to monitor and document agency vehicles and detentions amid an intensified crackdown known as Operation Catch of the Day, work that organizers, largely small nonprofits and volunteers, say has become exhausting as enforcement expands into rural and suburban areas.

Joan Sebastian Durán Guerrero, a 25-year-old Colombian national with lawful work authorization, was fatally shot by ICE officer David Brouillette during a traffic stop in Biddeford, Maine, while driving to his job as a food delivery and custodian driver. His partner, Karolina Rojas, and their 3-year-old daughter were nearby when agents rammed his vehicle and opened fire, striking him in the head. Officials later confirmed he was not the intended target; agents had been surveilling a nearby address for someone with a final removal order. A neighbor described him as 'a good person,' quiet and dedicated. His death made him the 11th person fatally shot by federal immigration officials during Trump's second term, coming days after agents killed another immigrant father in Houston. DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin briefly paused ICE traffic stops before Trump reversed the decision, and the FBI declined to open a civil rights investigation despite the officer's prior history of abusive conduct. Maine officials, including Senator Angus King, Governor Janet Mills, and Congresswoman Chellie Pingree, called for an independent investigation as protests broke out in Biddeford and his family sought to repatriate his body to Colombia.

Dhavalkumar Patel, owner of Wallace's Market in Friendship, Maine, was detained by ICE agents on June 28, 2026, at his store. Patel entered the U.S. from India in 2010 and was arrested by Border Patrol on November 1, 2010, for illegal entry. He failed to appear for his immigration hearing and was issued a removal order on August 8, 2011. Following his detention, he was held at Plymouth County Correctional Center in Massachusetts. His attorney filed a habeas corpus motion in U.S. District Court, and a federal judge issued an emergency stay against deportation and a temporary order preventing his transfer for 72 hours, citing due process rights.

A Burkina Faso citizen who fled violence and religious persecution and was lawfully admitted on a B-2 visa in November 2021 filed an asylum application within one year of arrival and maintained compliance with all USCIS requirements. ICE arrested him at his Portland home on June 30, 2026, and transported him to the Donald W. Wyatt Detention Facility in Rhode Island. The court issued a temporary restraining order enjoining ICE from removing him from the District of Rhode Island pending resolution of his habeas corpus petition, with exceptions only for medical emergencies or bond hearings before an Immigration Judge.

Dale Patel (also known as Dhavalkumar Kalidas Patel), owner of Wallace's Market in Friendship, Maine, was arrested by ICE agents on June 27 at his workplace. A native of India, Patel allegedly entered the U.S. without authorization on November 1, 2010, and failed to appear for an immigration hearing, resulting in a removal order issued in August 2011. He is being held at Plymouth County Correctional Facility in Massachusetts while his wife Hanna manages the store and cares for their 2.5-year-old U.S.-born son. Attorney Audrey Richardson filed a habeas corpus petition challenging his detention. U.S. District Court Judge Indira Talwani issued an emergency order preventing Patel's transfer for at least 72 hours and ordering advance notice before any transfer out of Massachusetts. Over 200 community members signed a petition supporting his return, and a GoFundMe campaign raised more than $7,800 to assist the family.

Eduardo Jose Alves, an Angolan asylum seeker living in Lewiston, Maine, who entered the U.S. on a valid tourist visa and filed an affirmative asylum application, was detained by ICE agents at his home on June 20, 2026. That same day, a court issued an emergency order staying his transfer out of Maine for 72 hours, but ICE moved him to Plymouth County Correctional Center in Massachusetts within two hours of the order. Attorneys raised questions about whether agents had a valid warrant and whether they improperly pressured his 15-year-old daughter to allow entry into the home. U.S. District Judge Stacey Neumann later found the detention violated the existing court order and that his out-of-state transfer impaired his right to counsel ahead of an imminent bond hearing, and ordered his immediate release from ICE custody. The dispute became a flashpoint between immigration authorities and attorneys challenging the administration's enforcement tactics.

Billy Bassikissa Bounguiena, a corrections officer at Cumberland County Sheriff's Office, was detained by ICE on Tuesday at his home in South Portland. He held a valid work permit and had no criminal history, according to county officials. ICE alleged he had a criminal record based on a 2019 domestic violence arrest in which no charges were filed; county officials dispute this characterization as false. He is being held at Wyatt Detention Facility in Rhode Island.

Brandy Rogers, a mental health therapist, was stopped by ICE agents in an unmarked vehicle in June after she volunteered to drive a neighbor home from district court. When ICE agents pounded on the car's doors and threatened to shatter the windows if she did not unlock the vehicle, Rogers initially refused but eventually complied. Her neighbor, whom Rogers identified as being in the country legally, was taken into custody and held for three weeks before being released. Rogers recounted: "I initially refused, shook my head no, but they weren't having any of it and just kept knocking on the door."