Local
Federal judge orders release of longtime Colorado priest from Aurora ICE detention
Edward Nalwamba, 78, left an Aurora immigration detention center after 13 months in custody, but two fellow detainees had to carry him to his ride after he said he was not allowed to take a wheelchair beyond the facility gate. His attorney says his health deteriorated sharply in detention; his immigration case remains unresolved.
A federal judge ordered immigration officials to release Edward Nalwamba by Tuesday, ending 13 months of detention for the 78-year-old Ugandan priest. When he left the GEO-operated Aurora facility, two fellow detainees carried him from the gate to his ride after, Nalwamba said, staff would not let him take a wheelchair farther.
Nalwamba told reporters he could walk and exercise before he was detained in September 2025, but now needs help moving. He said staff brought him toward the exit in a wheelchair and then told him it could not go beyond the gate. Two men in the facility offered to carry him, he said.
The circumstances drew criticism from U.S. Sen. John Hickenlooper. The Colorado Democrat said staff from his office visited the facility Tuesday and asked GEO employees to let Nalwamba call his caretakers before release and provide a wheelchair for the trip. Hickenlooper said staff assured his office both requests would be met, but neither was. He called the episode cruel and said he would continue seeking accountability.
Nalwamba’s attorney, Joy Athanasiou, said he entered detention in good health but became seriously ill while in custody. She said he was diagnosed with pneumonia in January, lost more than 30 pounds and collapsed. Since June, she said, he has had a continuing respiratory illness and has not received adequate testing and treatment. Nalwamba has described chest pain, coughing, dizziness and weakness in his legs.
The attorney said supporters are trying to arrange medical care and hope he can begin rehabilitation and physical therapy. In a statement in June, the Department of Homeland Security said people in ICE custody receive comprehensive medical care, including access to appointments and 24-hour emergency treatment. DHS had not responded by Tuesday evening to questions about the wheelchair restrictions, the release arrangements or the allegations about Nalwamba’s care.
Nalwamba previously served for about 15 years as a priest at Resurrection Anglican Fellowship in Greenwood Village. He came to the United States from Uganda in 2002 and remained after his tourist visa expired. He and his supporters say he fears persecution in Uganda because of his pro-democracy political activities.
DHS has said Nalwamba overstayed his visa, was granted voluntary departure in 2007 and received a final removal order in 2010. Before ICE detained him on Sept. 18, 2025, Nalwamba said, he was living under an immigration order of supervision.
Athanasiou’s legal challenge argued that the government could not continue holding him indefinitely. A federal judge granted his habeas corpus petition Monday and ordered his release no later than Oct. 20. The ruling ended his detention for now but did not resolve his underlying immigration case. Athanasiou said she fears ICE may try to detain him again.
Nalwamba said his release leaves him in the same uncertain position he faced before his arrest. His supporters are now focused on his medical recovery and on what happens next in his immigration case.