Mexican migrant with leukemia dies in ICE custody; advocates denounce medical negligence

A 29-year-old Mexican immigrant suffering from leukemia has died while in the custody of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) at a detention center in Georgia. Priciliano Trejo, known as 'Yanito,' passed away in a Georgia hospital after being held at the Stewart Detention Center, one of the largest immigration facilities in the country.

According to his family and migrant advocacy organizations, Trejo requested medical attention on July 6, about two weeks after his arrest in North Carolina. They allege that ICE failed to provide him with care for eight days until he was finally taken to the hospital on July 13. By July 15, Trejo was in a coma, and ICE contacted his family to arrange for his custody transfer.

Organizations like Detention Watch Network, Project South, and Georgia Latino Alliance for Human Rights expressed outrage over the death. Priyanka Bhatt, an attorney with Project South, stated, "He deserved to be with his loved ones while fighting leukemia. He deserved adequate and specialized medical care, not to be locked up in a crowded and lethal ICE prison, plagued by human rights violations and medical neglect."

These groups are demanding the closure of the Stewart Detention Center, which they claim has the highest mortality rate in the country and a long history of severe complaints regarding inhumane conditions and deficient medical attention. Amilcar Valencia, executive director of El Refugio, noted that Trejo's death is the 15th recorded fatality at the facility. Trejo's father is seeking answers, questioning how his son's health deteriorated so rapidly.

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Él merecía estar junto a sus seres queridos mientras luchaba contra la leucemia. Merecía recibir atención médica adecuada y especializada, no estar encerrado en una prisión del ICE hacinada y letal, plagada de violaciones a los derechos humanos y negligencia médica