The clock is ticking for a Greenwood Village pastor, now just days away from deportation after being detained by Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Edward Nalwamba, 78, who has preached in the Denver area since 2002, is scheduled to be removed to Uganda at the end of the week, his supporters say. His congregation and lawyers say they have filed emergency motions and plan to gather outside the Aurora detention complex this weekend.
According to reporting by Westword, Nalwamba was taken into ICE custody in September 2025 and has been held at the Aurora processing center since then. The outlet reports that he is set to be moved out of state on June 29 and deported on June 30 unless a federal court steps in with a stay. His new attorneys have filed an emergency stay of removal along with a motion to reopen his long-running asylum case.
Declining health in detention
Reverend Philip Eberhart told Westword, “I'm fearful for his life.” Nalwamba's lawyers say he has lost more than 30 pounds and now relies on a wheelchair after nearly nine months in custody. They also allege he has been treated for an upper respiratory virus and pneumonia, and that blood work points to signs of malnutrition, claims that underpin a habeas corpus petition challenging the lawfulness of his continued detention.
Past appeals and legal record
Nalwamba originally applied for asylum after coming to the United States in 2002 and refiled in 2003 after his first attorney allegedly failed to submit required documents, according to his current legal team. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the 10th Circuit considered his case in 2010; see the 10th Circuit for the court's decision.
Uganda outbreak raises the stakes
Supporters and attorneys argue that sending Nalwamba back to Uganda would expose him not only to political risk but also to serious public-health danger. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention issued a travel health notice in mid-June, urging enhanced precautions for travel to Uganda because of an outbreak of Bundibugyo virus disease. Advocates say that CDC guidance bolsters their humanitarian argument for a stay of removal and a fresh review of his asylum claim.
Church and community rally
Resurrection Anglican Fellowship in Greenwood Village has organized a “Stand with Edward” vigil for 4 p.m. on June 27 outside the Aurora ICE processing center at 3130 Oakland St., according to event listings by Colorado Times Recorder. The church's website lists its Greenwood Village contact information and highlights the congregation's letter-writing and outreach efforts on Nalwamba's behalf; see Resurrection Anglican Fellowship for contact details.
Local detention scrutiny and appeals climate
The Aurora detention complex, which ICE contracts to the private GEO Group, has been under scrutiny and the focus of court action in Colorado, including a recent federal order that requires ICE to retrain arresting officers, according to reporting. Appeals to the Board of Immigration Appeals have heavily favored the government in recent years. Local reporting notes that the government prevailed in roughly 97 percent of BIA matters in 2025, a statistic advocates cite to show just how steep a climb Nalwamba faces. KCUR has covered those trends.
What happens next is both procedural and fast-moving. Nalwamba's attorneys say they expect a ruling on the emergency stay before he can be moved out of state and that, if a stay is granted, they will push to reopen his asylum claim. Until then, his congregation is holding daily prayers, contacting elected officials and preparing for the vigil while his lawyers race through the filings that could determine whether he remains in Colorado or boards a plane to Uganda.
