In a span of just four days, four immigrants died while in the custody of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) in detention centers located in four different states of the United States.

The deaths occurred between December 12 and 15. According to official statements from the agency itself, at least 32 deaths were recorded in ICE facilities during 2025, a figure that human rights organizations consider alarming, Newsweek reported.

The four immigrants who died in ICE detention centers

The first case occurred on December 12, when Jean Wilson Brutus, a 41-year-old Haitian citizen, died at Newark University Hospital in New Jersey.

According to reports, the man had suffered a medical emergency while detained at the Delaney Hall Detention Center.

According to ICE, he had been taken into custody the day before, on December 11, after being arrested for criminal damage.

Emergency medical services responded to the center and transported him to the hospital, where he was pronounced dead. The agency indicated that Brutus had entered the United States without documentation in June 2023 and was on parole while awaiting his immigration proceedings. Two days later, on December 14, Fouad Saeed Abdulkadir, a 46-year-old Eritrean man, died at the Moshannon Valley Processing Center in Philipsburg, Pennsylvania. According to the official statement, the man complained of chest pain while in custody. Medical personnel at the center performed resuscitation maneuvers and requested emergency assistance, but he was pronounced dead at the scene. Abdulkadir had been in ICE custody for 215 days, awaiting an immigration hearing.

Two others died in Michigan and Mississippi

On December 15, Nenko Stanev Gantchev, a 56-year-old Bulgarian citizen,He was found unconscious in his cell during a routine check at the North Lake Processing Center in Baldwin, Michigan. Medical personnel initiated CPR and requested outside support, but were unable to save his life. ICE stated that the official cause of death was still under investigation, although natural causes were suspected. Gantchev had previous legal permanent resident status and was awaiting deportation proceedings. That same day, the death of Delvin Francisco Rodriguez, a 39-year-old Nicaraguan man, was reported at a hospital in Natchez, Mississippi. He had been arrested by ICE in September 2025 and was being held at the Adams County Detention Center. He was hospitalized on December 4 after a medical emergency and, days later, after a failed brain function test, was taken off life support at his family's request. His death was confirmed by the agency on December 15.

ICE says it guarantees medical care in detention centers

Organizations such as Human Rights Watch have warned that the increase in detentions has limited access to medical care.

Meanwhile, the Department of Homeland Security's Office of Inspector General and ICE's Office of Professional Responsibility review each case to determine whether detention standards were met.

For its part, ICE wrote in a press release published on December 18. There he stated:

“Comprehensive medical care is provided from the moment of arrival and throughout their stay. All individuals in ICE custody receive medical, dental, and mental health evaluations within 12 hours of arrival at each detention center; a full health assessment within 14 days of entering ICE custody or arriving at a facility; access to medical appointments; and 24-hour emergency care. At no time during detention is a detained alien denied emergency care.”

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