According to the lawsuit, filed Thursday, "guests living at the Humanitarian Emergency Relief and Response Centers were subjected to victimization by both the New York State Division of Military and Naval Affairs the "National Guard" and DocGo staff, who were involved in the sexual exploitation of guests.
The Humanitarian Emergency Relief and Response Center in Cheektowaga, according to the lawsuit, was "merely a dilapidated Quality Inn hotel, plagued by numerous issues such as unclean conditions, foul odors, damaged drywall, exposed electrical outlets and inadequate amenities. It's a scary situation," McMurray said.
The lawsuit claims, "the mattresses displayed deep stains and were infested with insects, leading to the children living there being repeatedly bitten across their bodies. And I would say the people that brought the lawsuit, they're very brave," McMurray said. New York National Guard Sergeant Deven Colon, the highest ranking official at Cheektowaga center, is accused of regularly "having inappropriate interactions with asylum seeker, Plaintiff Jane Doe.
On one occasion, according to the lawsuit, "he arranged for and transported Jane Doe and her children to a rental property nearly two hours away. Once there, he demanded sexual favors in exchange for his assistance to her and her family. Jane Doe, who had journeyed through jungles with her children, evaded sexual traffickers in Mexico, and crossed rivers, suddenly found herself in a snow-covered rural property in America where she was totally isolated with her children, facing pressure from a member of the NY National Guard for sex.
Once they returned, the lawsuit states that Colon began texting Jane Doe his regrets saying, "I am just so lost and I need to find myself again. Deven Colon, the guardsman accused in the lawsuit of having sex with the Venezuelan woman, confirmed that an inquiry had begun.
