Woodbury asylum seeker with rare skin disease held by ICE, family urges medical release
FOX 9 reports that 32-year-old Hani Duglof of Woodbury, a Libyan asylum seeker who works as an IT specialist, was detained by ICE over the weekend near New Richmond, Wisconsin despite having a pending asylum case and, according to his family, no criminal record. His brother says Duglof has a rare genetic skin disorder that causes his skin to blister and peel easily and a narrowed esophagus that makes swallowing solid food difficult; he previously spent a month in intensive care in Minnesota because of the condition. After agents brought him to the Whipple Federal Building detention facility, his family says he could not eat the standard food and was left lying on a crowded concrete floor with about 30 men sharing a filthy single bathroom, raising infection concerns. He was later transferred to Fairview Southdale Hospital, where doctors provided soft food, but ICE plans to send him to a detention facility in El Paso, Texas, where his family fears staff will be unable to manage his complex medical needs. His brother is pushing for Duglof to be released on bond in Minnesota so he can continue specialized treatment, warning that deportation back to Libya, with limited health care, would be a “death sentence.”
📌 Key Facts
- Detainee is identified as 32-year-old Hani Duglof of Woodbury, a Libyan national with an active U.S. asylum case and employment as an IT specialist.
- Family says Duglof has a rare genetic skin condition that causes blistering and peeling and a narrowed esophagus that has previously landed him in a Minnesota ICU for a month.
- ICE allegedly detained him near New Richmond, WI, took him to the Whipple Federal Building where he was held on a crowded concrete floor with one dirty bathroom for about 30 men, then to Fairview Southdale, and now plans to move him to an El Paso detention center.
- His brother is publicly asking that he be released on bond in Minnesota for ongoing care, saying deportation to Libya with inadequate medical resources would likely be fatal.
📊 Relevant Data
As of September 2025, 71 percent of ICE detainees had no criminal conviction, with 25 percent having pending criminal charges, most of which were immigration-related.
U.S. Immigrant Detention Grows to Record — Migration Policy Institute
Between January 20 and August 5, 2025, there were 510 credible reports of human rights abuses against ICE detainees, including medical neglect and denial of adequate food or water.
MEDICAL NEGLECT & DENIAL OF ADEQUATE FOOD OR WATER IN U.S. IMMIGRATION DETENTION — ossoff.senate.gov
Libya's healthcare system is crippled, particularly for chronic and rare diseases, leading locals to migrate for treatment after exhausting domestic options.
Libya's broken healthcare system drives locals to migrate — p4h.world
From 2020 to 2024, over 81,000 new Americans moved to Minnesota through immigration, making it the primary driver of population change, with 8.4 percent of the state's residents being foreign-born.
Immigration became the leading component of population growth in Minnesota this decade — mnchamber.com
In 2025, ICE conducted large-scale operations in Minnesota, including targeting undocumented Somalis, resulting in over 400 arrests amid heightened enforcement.
ICE operation shows the difficulty of immigration arrests amid Minnesota tensions — NBC News
Asylum grant rates in U.S. immigration courts dropped from 38.2 percent in August 2024 to 19.2 percent in August 2025.
Immigration Court Asylum Grant Rates Cut in Half — TRAC Reports
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