Chinese-American community alarmed after China national dies in ICE custody

The Chinese-American community is outraged after a Chinese national, Wei Lianyong, died in custody of the US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) on US territory. Wei, 51, reportedly passed away on August 23 in the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI), although ICE did not disclose his death until this week. Gabriel Chin, a law professor at the University of California, Davis School of Law, stated that the incident raises serious concerns about the treatment of Chinese-Americans and should energize them to stop what he called "an attack on the existence of the community."

Wei was arrested on August 21 for allegedly assaulting a family of five, and was taken into ICE custody in Saipan, the archipelago's capital, the following day. The next morning, he was found unresponsive and died at a local hospital. His death is the fifth among Chinese nationals in ICE or US Border Patrol custody since March 2025.

Chinese-American advocates argue that ICE has been recruiting agents too rapidly under the aggressive immigration and deportation policies of the Trump administration, leading to inadequate standards. Justin Sadowsky, legal director of the Chinese-American Legal Defence Alliance, noted that the rise in deaths in custody can be attributed to factors like heat, lack of food, insufficient medical care, and mental stress tied to incarceration.

Chris Kwok, an Asian-American community organizer, linked the incident to a broader pattern of scapegoating immigrants and Asian-Americans for various issues, creating a hostile climate for Asian-American and immigrant communities. The Chinese Consulate General in Los Angeles expressed its concerns to relevant US authorities and demanded a thorough investigation into the cause of Wei's death, including transparency and measures to prevent similar incidents.