Associated Press (AP) — A Nicaraguan man who died at a troubled Texas detention camp days after being detained by immigration agents in Minnesota appears to have died by suicide, according to a 911 call and records released Wednesday.
Victor Manuel Diaz, 36, was discovered by guards on January 14 at Camp East Montana in El Paso, Texas. The camp official reported on a 911 call that he found Diaz with his pants tied around his neck.
Diaz’s death marks at least the third known fatality of a detainee at Camp East Montana, which has opened last year to accommodate 5,000 detainees located near the U.S.-Mexico border. Advocates have raised concerns about ongoing violence, abuse, and neglect at the facility, with one previous death ruled a homicide.
Randall Kallinen, an attorney representing Diaz's family, questioned the official account, asserting that he was not depressed and was expected to reunite with his family in Nicaragua after potential deportation.
“Even if it is suicide, was there something that happened to him that drove him to suicide?” Kallinen asked, emphasizing the necessity for a thorough investigation.
Gonzalez, a camp official who made the 911 call, did not witness the incident. A report by emergency medical services suggested that Diaz may have attempted to hang himself with a bed sheet. Federal officials have labeled the death as a presumed suicide, pending autopsy results.
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detained Diaz on January 6 while sweeping through Minneapolis for undocumented individuals. Following his detention, he was transferred to the Texas complex.
Family members lost contact with Diaz just after he went to work on January 6. They received startling news from ICE on January 15, alerting them to his death. Carlos Morales, president of the Texas Nicaraguan Community, noted the family's disbelief upon hearing the news.
A coalition of advocates and a Democratic congresswoman have called for the closure of Camp East Montana, especially following another recent death there of Geraldo Lunas Campos, whose passing was determined a homicide due to chokehold restraint by guards.
The ICE agency stated Diaz's death was reported on January 18 but did not investigate further, attributing his death to suicide while the investigation is still pending. His body was not sent for autopsy in El Paso, raising further concerns regarding transparency and accountability in these tragic events.
