[content warning: rape and physical assault]

Felip* is 20 years old, and he is from Colombia. Felip’s family was displaced from their rural hometown around 2007. His grandparents had been attacked by a guerilla  group, and they tried to file a police report. The police advised them to leave, and they moved to another town outside a major city. They lived there until 2024, when they returned to their hometown due to economic problems following an accident that cost Felip’s father one of his eyes. Upon the family’s return, problems with guerillas restarted.

Earlier this year, when Felip was 19 years old, guerilla group members tried to recruit him. They threatened to harm him if he did not perform work for them. When they recruited him, they tried to rape him, and Felip did not let them. The guerilla members hit him on the head and broke his arm, telling him that if he did not let them rape him, they would kill him. The guerilla members took Felip with them, and they moved from one area to another for 3 days. During this time, they raped him, hit him, and beat him numerous times. After the third day, he was able to escape. He spent 2 days walking, with an injured head and broken arm, until he managed to return home.

Felip tried to report this to the police in his hometown and seek their protection. The police did not accept his complaint. Instead, the police beat him and told him that he needed to leave, or they would kill him. Felip then fled back to the other town and he tried to file a police report there. The police there told him that he should not file a report. Felip was returning home when a police truck pulled up next to him, and 4 men in municipal police uniforms told him to get into the police truck. The 4 men beat him and told him to stop filing reports against the guerillas.

After this, Felip went into hiding. He was afraid to be seen in the streets because of the threats from the guerilla and the police. Felip was even afraid to leave his house to seek medical attention after the multiple beatings. After about a month of hiding, Felip got in touch with relatives who helped him leave the country and come to the U.S.

Felip believes that there is nowhere safe in Colombia for him to live and that either the guerilla group or the police would find him and kill him if he returns. After he left the country, his father received a letter saying: “If your son returns, we’ll leave a dead body outside your home.” As a result of what happened to him in Colombia, Felip continues to suffer from various symptoms, including stress, paranoia, and PTSD symptoms. Nevertheless, he is communicative, eager to work on his case, and open to sharing his story despite the heavy subject matter. He has no criminal history in the U.S. or in Colombia.

Felip passed a DHS Credible Fear Interview and needs legal representation at his deportation hearing. Based on the information that Felip has shared, he is eligible for fear-based relief from deportation, which may include asylum (if he can show that he qualifies for an exception to the current asylum ban), withholding of removal, and protection under the Convention Against Torture.

All Amica Center matters placed with a pro bono team are robustly mentored by a Amica Center attorney. Our mentoring program includes an opening meeting to discuss the scope and process of the matter, provision of samples, guidance on the law, review of draft filings, assistance with client contact, and guidance on preparation for interviews and hearings.

*Pseudonyms are used to protect privacy.