ALBANY, Ga. (WALB) — Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) is now releasing more information about an incident that happened in Dougherty County on Sept. 17 when a man was run over by an ICE vehicle.

On Sept. 23, ICE released the following information:

“On September 17, ICE conducted a vehicle stop in Albany, Georgia. After the vehicle came to a stop, three people fled on foot. During the foot pursuit, Edgar Borromeo Cabrera-Gomez, a 28-year-old illegal alien from Guatemala, lost his footing and slid under an ICE vehicle as the officer attempted to stop in front of him. Cabrera-Gomez was taken to the Phoebe Putney Memorial Hospital with injuries that were not reported as life-threatening. He is in stable condition pending discharge.”

ICE officials go on to say they previously removed Cabrera-Gomez from the U.S. four other times.

Cabrera-Gomez’s family says they refute ICE’s version of events. Family members tell WALB that Cabrera-Gomez wasn’t the driver of the van that was pulled over. They also say when they first heard about the incident, they called Cabrera-Gomez’s phone and an official answered, telling them he was the driver and jumped out of the van, injuring himself.

The family also claims that when they showed up at the hospital, they were not allowed to see Cabrera-Gomez, who reportedly told them his leg and spine are broken.

Attorney cites lack of contact

Cabrera-Gomez attorney declined to comment when contacted, stating they haven’t been able to reach Cabrera-Gomez despite multiple attempts and still don’t know whether he is in the hospital or has been moved to a detention facility.

Immigration attorney Christopher Helt said that situation is not unusual, explaining that ICE will not speak with legal counsel without an official, signed Form G-28.

“You would want your client to sign the document saying, yes, I’ve hired you as my attorney. But if your client is detained and behind bars and they will not allow you to see your client, it’s like this horrible catch-22 that’s going on,” Helt said.

Tracking detainees called difficult

Helt said ICE operates an online detainee locator, but tracking someone down is rarely simple.

“It’s a crisis. So, you know, there are limited numbers of ICE officials that are processing this type of data. So, this data, unfortunately, is not timely updating,” Helt said.

Cabrera-Gomez’s attorney says they plan to issue a full response to ICE’s claims once they are able to consult with him. ICE says Cabrera-Gomez is in stable condition and is pending discharge from the hospital.

ICE is still looking for the two other people who were in the van.

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