A former nurse at Trinity Health Ann Arbor Hospital is facing federal charges after authorities say she helped a man detained by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement slip out of the building through an ambulance bay — and he still hasn't been found. Chloe Renae Freeman, of Whitmore Lake, was charged with instigating or assisting the escape of a person under arrest following the May 28 disappearance.
The man, a Mexican citizen in ICE custody, had injured himself while trying to escape immigration agents on May 28 and was brought to the hospital for evaluation and a CT scan, according to WSAU. Investigators say Freeman removed his IV after the scan and escorted him through the hospital's ambulance-bay doors, according to Newsweek.
Security camera footage allegedly showed the man leaving the hospital through those same doors less than three minutes after Freeman retrieved him, the station's report states. Law enforcement has not located him since, The Guardian reports, citing court filings that refer to him only by initials.
Bond Set, Court Date Ahead
Freeman appeared in federal court and was released on a $10,000 unsecured bond, per the same Newsweek report. A preliminary examination in her case is scheduled for October 20, which will be the next major step in determining whether the charge proceeds. She has not been convicted of any crime.
CBS News Detroit first reported the charges against the former hospital employee, who the network described as having allegedly helped the detained man flee. Trinity Health Ann Arbor confirmed to Newsweek that Freeman no longer works at the hospital and declined to comment further on the specific allegations, saying only that the matter is active.
Case Unfolds Amid Broader Immigration Enforcement Push
The Detroit News framed the alleged hospital escape as unfolding during a nationwide crackdown on illegal immigration and an ongoing fugitive manhunt, underscoring the intensity of federal attention on cases involving detainees who evade custody. That broader climate has also surfaced in other states — in New Jersey, a separate and unrelated case recently drew attention to an ICE detainee shackled to a hospital bed and denied visits after surgeries, according to NJ.com.
Reports on Freeman's age differ: WSAU lists her as 33, while The Detroit News put her age at 29. Hoodline could not independently confirm which figure is accurate. What remains clear is that the man she is accused of helping has not turned up in the months since his disappearance, leaving investigators — and the federal case against Freeman — still searching for answers ahead of her October court date.
