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Attorney says Newark immigrant center detainee was raped, then transferred 2 days later
By
Michael Sol Warren
Published Jul 7, 2026
Modified Jul 7, 2026
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Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images
By
Michael Sol Warren
Published Jul 7, 2026
Modified Jul 7, 2026
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The attorney for a man detained at Delaney Hall alleges he was raped by another detainee late last month, and said he was then transferred to another state just two days later.
Hieison Ultengo Ultengo, a 37-year-old Colombian immigrant, was taken to University Hospital after the alleged assault on June 25, according to his lawyer, Catherine Reilly. After receiving treatment, Ultengo returned to Delaney Hall, where he was placed in medical isolation, she said. On June 27, Ultengo was transferred out of Delaney Hall to the Adams County Correction Center in Mississippi, where he remains, according to his lawyer.
“So two days after he was raped, he was transferred,” Reilly said. She added that Ultengo’s family learned of his transfer from other detainees who were housed with him, and that ICE has never given a reason for the move.
“Aside from that one email that I got on Sunday morning from an unnamed person from a general ICE inbox, no one has ever given any reason for his transfer,” Reilly said.
Ultengo did not know the name of his alleged attacker but identified him by photo when questioned by ICE officers following the incident, Reilly said. She said an official in ICE’s Newark field office told her the agency was investigating.
A spokesperson for the Department of Homeland Security, which oversees both Homeland Security Investigations and ICE, confirmed to Gothamist that the alleged rape had been reported and that Ultengo was examined at a local hospital. They said an investigation is underway.
But the DHS said it could not provide more details because of the ongoing investigation and offered no explanation for the transfer to Mississippi.
Reilly said the alleged assault was reported to Newark Police, who declined to take up the case because it allegedly occurred in a federal facility. The Newark Police Department declined to comment and referred questions to HSI.
Ultengo entered the U.S. illegally in 2022 and presented himself to border agents at the time to make an asylum claim, according to Reilly. He’d been released on parole to make an asylum claim and settled in New Jersey, starting a family and working while keeping federal authorities updated on his whereabouts, Reilly said.
Ultengo married a U.S. citizen and is in the process of seeking a green card through marriage, according to Reilly, who added he has no criminal record.
“He doesn't meet any of the criteria that any rational person would use to determine whether somebody should be in detention,” Reilly said. “Immigration detention is not meant to be punitive, but it's obviously being used in a punitive way.”
Ultengo had been in Delaney Hall since being detained by ICE in October. In December, an immigration judge ordered Ultengo to be deported. Reilly said they are still challenging that removal order.
Reilly said Ultengo’s transfer to Mississippi has stressed his family and made it harder for her to organize his legal defense. Ultengo, who was diagnosed with HIV before coming to America, has not been regularly getting the medication he needs to treat the disease since being sent to Mississippi, according to Reilly.
“He's away from his family, he's away from his husband,” Reilly said. “ I can still communicate with him, but it's much harder to do things. I can't see him in person. If I need him to sign documents, it's exponentially harder if we need to do anything.”
The alleged rape was not Ultengo’s first traumatic experience inside Delaney Hall, Reilly said. Ultengo and other detainees reported feeling physically violated during a search in the detention center in March.
Ultengo was also caught up in an incident inside Delaney Hall on May 28, when facility guards used physical force and chemical agents in a confrontation with detainees.
Detainee families and activists in communication with people inside the facility previously said guards that day were targeting an English-speaking man who had been serving as an informal translator for others inside as detainees conducted a hunger and labor strike. DHS denied that, and said guards were responding to an altercation between detainees.
Reilly said Ultengo, who had not been participating in the strike, was in a hallway when guards rushed past him and pushed him to the ground on their way to other detainees.
She said he suffered a nose injury from the incident, and that he was bleeding profusely. That is similar to descriptions from family members of other detainees, who said their loved ones witnessed a man with a possibly broken nose covered in blood.
Reilly said Ultengo was taken to University Hospital that day for treatment; Gothamist witnessed multiple University Hospital ambulances transporting people out of Delaney Hall.
Tagged
immigration
new jersey
public safety
Michael Sol Warren
Michael Sol Warren covers New Jersey for WNYC and Gothamist, and previously reported on issues around the Garden State for NJ Spotlight News and NJ Advance Media. He can be reached at [email protected].
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