Second person dies in immigration custody in Arizona
May 13, 2019, 1:00 PM | Updated: 1:12 pm
(AP Photo/Eric Gay, File)
(AP Photo/Eric Gay, File)
PHOENIX — Another person has died in the custody of Immigration and Customs Enforcement in Arizona, marking two such deaths in about a month.
ICE officials said 21-year-old Simratpal Singh was found unresponsive and not breathing at the La Paz County Jail near the California border earlier this month.
Singh was airlifted to a hospital where he was pronounced dead, the agency said Friday.
An autopsy was ordered to determine the cause of death.
The La Paz County Sheriff’s Office has asked the Mohave County Sheriff Department to conduct an investigation.
Singh was transferred into ICE custody after he posted bond on charges of assault and sexual assault.
He is the second to die in immigration custody in a little over a month.
Abel Reyes-Clemente, 54, died April 3, two days after he was treated for flu symptoms.
Reyes-Clemente was being held at the Florence Service Processing Center about 65 miles southeast of Phoenix when he was placed in medical observation after showing symptoms of influenza.
Staff found him unresponsive and not breathing early that morning. Medical staff tried to revive him but could not.
He had been in custody since he was released from a Phoenix-area jail on Feb. 26.
Five people have died in ICE custody nationwide since last October.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
