Cary pastor suffers stroke in ICE custody, family seeks release

Gabriel Lasanda Johnson III, a 55-year-old ordained pastor and longtime Cary resident, suffered a severe ischemic stroke in U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement custody in Texas. His family says he had faced medical neglect in detention. His daughter, Gabri Johnson, said ICE came to the family’s Cary home on Saturday, July 18, 2026, and took her father into custody.

In an Instagram post, Gabri Johnson wrote, “Hello, my name is Gabri Johnson and 16 days ago ICE came to my childhood home in Cary, North Carolina and took my 55-year-old father,” and said he had been in ICE custody in Georgia and then Texas. Another post said the family was asking that he be allowed “time at home with his family to recover.” A separate post on July 30 said Johnson was hospitalized in Texas after suffering a stroke.

Emergency complaints have been filed with the Department of Homeland Security Office of Inspector General.

In 2024, the Congressional Research Service said the COVID-19 pandemic and whistleblower complaints had deepened concern about medical care in ICE custody, including allegations of medical neglect and unnecessary gynecological procedures. DHS OIG has previously inspected ICE facilities over detainee-treatment concerns, including a 2017 inspection that raised issues about treatment and care.

Sen. Jon Ossoff’s October 2025 oversight report said his office had received 85 credible reports of medical neglect and 82 credible reports of denial of adequate food or water in U.S. immigration detention.