The number of people who have died in Immigration and Customs Enforcement custody this fiscal year has reached a record. Twenty-nine detainees have died since October, surpassing the previous high of 28 in 2004, according to government data.
The most recent death was 27-year-old Aled Damien Carbonell-Betancourt, a Cuban held in ICE custody in Miami. ICE’s initial report says he was found unresponsive in his cell on April 12 and lists the cause as a “presumed suicide,” though the official cause remains under investigation. ICE said Carbonell-Betancourt entered the U.S. in 2024 via parole, was arrested for resisting an officer with violence in 2025, and was transferred into ICE custody earlier this year.
Deaths have risen as detention numbers have surged under the Trump administration. Detentions are more than 70% higher under President Trump compared with the first year of the Biden administration. The administration has carried out an extensive crackdown that has resulted in arrests and detentions of people in the country illegally, including some without criminal records and some with temporary protections. There are about 60,000 people currently in immigration detention.
The Department of Homeland Security disputed that deaths have spiked, saying the increase reflects the larger detained population and that, as of April 16, “death rates in custody under the Trump administration are 0.009% of the detained population.” DHS said ICE provides detainees access to medical care and said, “For many illegal aliens this is the best healthcare they have received their entire lives,” adding that detainees are encouraged to self-deport using the CBP Home App.
At a congressional hearing, acting ICE Director Todd Lyons said the higher number of deaths is linked to having “the highest amount in detention that ICE has ever had since its inception in 2003.” He noted the agency spent nearly half a billion dollars last fiscal year on care and reiterated that detainees receive a complete physical within 14 days and are seen by a medical professional within 24 hours of admission. Lyons, who submitted his resignation hours after testifying, said he does not want anyone to die in custody. He could not provide a current count of staff in the Office of Detention Oversight when asked.
Senators Jon Ossoff and Raphael Warnock raised concerns about delays and limited detail in public reporting of detainee deaths. As of April 13, they noted that of 49 deaths in custody since January 2025, ICE issued interim death notices within 48 hours in only 15 cases. Lyons acknowledged reporting timeliness was being addressed and said death reporting was essential work even during funding lapses.
Adelanto ICE Processing Center in California and Camp East Montana in El Paso, Texas, have each reported three deaths, the most of any facilities. ICE’s initial reports list causes across the operation that include suicide, alcohol withdrawal, liver failure, kidney failure, and symptoms such as shortness of breath.
One death at Camp East Montana — Geraldo Lunas Campos — was later ruled a homicide by the El Paso County Medical Examiner’s Office. DHS initially said Lunas Campos died after experiencing “medical distress” and said he had been placed in segregation after becoming “disruptive while in line for medication.” The medical examiner ruled the cause of death “asphyxia due to neck and torso compression,” and the FBI is investigating. Lunas Campos’ attorney and family have said he came to the U.S. decades ago and that his children plan to file a wrongful death lawsuit. DHS noted Lunas Campos had prior convictions, including larceny, unlawful possession of a weapon during a robbery, and sexual contact with a child under 11.
Rahul Mukherjee contributed to this report.
