A 48-year-old Guatemalan citizen, identified as Francisco Gaspar-Andres, He died Dec. 3 at an El Paso hospital. while in the custody of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), according to the federal agency.
The death occurred at 5:53 a.m. local time at Providence East Hospitals, where he had been admitted on November 16.
According to ICE, the official cause of death is unknown, although hospital medical staff attribute it to natural liver and kidney failure.
The agency assured that Gaspar-Andrés received “constant and quality” medical care since the deterioration of his state of health was noted.
Gaspar-Andres was arrested September 1 in Florida during a planned operation by the state Highway Patrol and agents from Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO), the branch of ICE responsible for detaining and deporting migrants.
According to immigration authorities, had crossed the border irregularly from Mexico. After his arrest, he was transferred to the Krome South Detention Center in Miami, and shortly thereafter he was briefly hospitalized for alcohol withdrawal symptoms.
On September 19, ICE transferred him to El Paso, where he was held at the Camp East Montana Detention Center while his immigration proceedings continued.
Medical records included in the report indicate that has attracted attention on several occasions due to reflux, allergies, headaches and other discomforts.
On November 14, an immigration judge ordered his expulsion to Guatemala. In the following days, his state of health worsened. He was intubated on November 21 and placed on a liver transplant list on November 24, according to DHS.
Organizations such as Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch and local legal groups have for years documented conditions they call cruel, inhumane and degrading at immigration detention centers where the Guatemalan was held, including Krome and the ICE mega-camp at Fort Bliss known as Camp East Montana.
Testimonies and reports point to a recurring pattern: overcrowding, extreme temperatures, overflowing or dirty toilets, very limited access to showers, poor nutritionconstant lighting and widespread use of solitary confinement, as well as serious or adverse delays in medical and mental health care, in some cases linked to avoidable hospitalizations and deaths in custody.
Under Donald Trump’s administration, there have been numerous reports from human rights organizations, academics, and media outlets of an increase in the widespread use of immigration detention, including of people without serious criminal records or criminal histories.
During fiscal year 2025 At least 20 to 22 people have died while in ICE custodymaking it the deadliest year in two decades, surpassed only by 2004 according to official data.
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