On September 17, 2025, around 5:20am, agents from ICE, the FBI, and Homeland Security followed Edgar Hernan Elias Escobar (“Hernan”) from the apartment that he shared with his U.S. citizen wife, Leslie Perlera Gonzalez, and their Wheaton Terrier, Albert, in Malden, MA. Leslie and Hernan had just started trying to have children.

Individuals driving an unmarked car sideswiped Hernan’s vehicle, and, after he presented them with his ID, smashed the driver’s side window in, shattering it. The agents refused to identify themselves, despite his pleas. When Leslie arrived, she could see a masked individual pointing a taser in Hernan’s face.

Hernan was injured during this encounter and was brought, on a stretcher, to the Emergency Room at Melrose Wakefield Hospital. There, Leslie and Hernan’s attorney were both denied access to him, and hospital staff provided them with limited information. More than a dozen supporters came to the hospital. After Hernan had an X-Ray of his shoulder, he was discharged to ICE custody. Hospital staff locked the main exit to the hospital, so no one inside could walk out to see Hernan being brought out the back door. He was transported to the Boston-area ICE field office. There was no warrant for his arrest.

Hernan has no criminal record, is a caretaker for his elderly mother and a resource for his sister and his church community, and he has been living in the US for almost a decade. He is currently being held without bond, despite his strong ties to the community and his kind and gentle nature.

All funds raised will be used for basic expenses like rent, groceries, bills, and other essentials for Hernan’s mother, sister, and community. Because of the brutal and complicated nature of his arrest, it is unclear if and when he will be released, and his immigration case could take months, if not years, to resolve itself.

Thank you for your support in this incredibly difficult time for the Elias Escobar family. Updates regarding events and press will continue to be shared here, and we will continue to fundraiser even if we reach our goal.