Several migrants deported from the United States to the Central African Republic say they are trapped in legal and humanitarian limbo, living in a detention center in a country where they have no family ties, legal documents or clear path forward.
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Their stories come as the Trump administration asks the U.S. Supreme Court to once again allow the government to continue deporting migrants to so-called third countries, locations where deportees may have no connection but are willing to receive them.
Among those deported is Yasmany Moreno De Armas, a Cuban national who lived in Hialeah Gardens and said federal immigration authorities sent him to the Central African Republic, a landlocked nation in Central Africa. Speaking from the country, Moreno De Armas said he has been there since August and described daily life as increasingly difficult.
“The situation here is very hard,” Moreno De Armas said in Spanish.
He said malaria is widespread, language barriers make everyday tasks challenging and reports of kidnappings have fueled fears among deportees.
Moreno De Armas said he and others are struggling to survive because they lack passports, identity documents or legal status.
Another Cuban national, Aristides Fernández García, described their situation as a “migratory limbo.”
The migrants’ accounts come amid an ongoing legal battle over the federal government’s authority to deport people to nations other than their home countries.
According to Third Country Deportation Watch, a group tracking the policy, Mexico has received the largest number of migrants deported under third-country arrangements, followed by countries including Guatemala, Costa Rica and Honduras. Several African nations, including the Central African Republic, have also accepted deportees.
The policy has generated legal challenges from immigrant rights advocates and attorneys who argue migrants should receive adequate notice and an opportunity to challenge deportation to countries where they fear persecution.
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Miami immigration attorney Willie Allen pointed to a recent federal court ruling that found migrants must be given meaningful notice before being removed to a third country.
“You cannot give somebody 24 hours’ notice that you’re going to be sent to Liberia,” Allen said. “You’re going to have notice sufficient to file a claim as to why you don’t want to be sent to Liberia or to the Central African Republic and have an opportunity to fight not to be deported to a third country where you fear being persecuted.”
Nur Mohammod, a migrant from Bangladesh who was also deported to the Central African Republic, said he avoids leaving the detention center because he fears harassment by local authorities.
“Whenever we go outside, the police harass us,” Mohammod said. “Whenever they see us, they demand money.”
Others describe living with constant uncertainty about what comes next.
Kenis López González, a Nicaraguan national who is also in the Central African Republic, said he and the other deportees feel abandoned.
The men interviewed by NBC6 said they were pursuing immigration cases in the United States when they were removed. They also maintain they have no criminal records.
Several of the migrants allege they were not told they were being sent to Africa until shortly before boarding their deportation flight and say they were not given an opportunity to object to the destination country.
NBC6 has contacted federal immigration officials and provided the names and information of the migrants featured in this report. As of publication, officials had not responded to requests for comment or provided details about the individual cases.
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