By Ted Hesson
WASHINGTON, Jan 16 (Reuters) – U.S. immigration officials on Friday provided a new but incomplete account of an immigrant detainee’s death in Texas after a report emerged suggesting it may have been homicide.
The Washington Post on Thursday reported the El Paso County medical examiner is likely to classify the death as a homicide, raising more questions about how it unfolded.
The January 3 death was one of four deaths in U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement custody over a 10-day period at the start of the year. Detention deaths reached a 20-year high in 2025 as President Donald Trump’s administration ramped up the number of people held for alleged immigration violations.
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security initially said in a January 9 press release it was investigating the death of Cuban immigrant Geraldo Lunas Campos, 55, which occurred after he experienced “medical distress.”
Lunas was being held in Camp East Montana, a detention site opened by the Trump administration inside Fort Bliss that has been criticized by immigrant rights advocates.
DHS did not provide a cause of death, but the Washington Post reported that the medical examiner’s office planned to list the cause of death as a lack of oxygen due to pressure on the neck and chest, citing a recording of a conversation between the medical examiner’s office and the detainee’s daughter.
The Post also interviewed a detainee held at the Camp East Montana site who said he saw guards choking Lunas when he refused to enter solitary confinement.
In a new statement on Friday, a DHS spokesperson said Lunas, who had lived in the U.S. since 1996 and had multiple criminal convictions, attempted to take his own life while detained at the detention site.
DHS said the security staff “immediately intervened to save his life” but that Lunas “violently resisted” the security staff.
“During the ensuing struggle, [Lunas] stopped breathing and lost consciousness,” DHS said. “Medical staff was immediately called and responded. After repeated attempts to resuscitate him, EMTs declared him deceased on the scene.”
The DHS statement did not mention the Washington Post story. The department did not respond to a Reuters request for comment regarding the report and DHS’ decision to issue a new statement on Friday.
The El Paso medical examiner’s office did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
In the months that follow detainee deaths, ICE typically publishes detailed individual reports, with the last such report published in September 2025.
In a December letter, the American Civil Liberties Union urged ICE and the Defense Department to close Camp East Montana, citing reports and allegations around use of force and poor living conditions.
(Reporting by Ted Hesson; Editing by Aurora Ellis)
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