Call for Investigation into Deaths at Texas ICE Detention Center, Including Cuban National

The spotlight is once again on the United States' immigration detention system following the revelation of three deaths within a span of 44 days at the Camp East Montana facility, operated by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) in Fort Bliss, Texas.

State and federal lawmakers are now demanding a thorough and transparent investigation into the conditions within this complex, which has been criticized for prioritizing profit over basic human safety and care standards.

As reported by Common Dreams, the latest alarm was triggered by the death of Víctor Manuel Díaz, a 36-year-old Nicaraguan immigrant detained by ICE in Minneapolis and transferred to Texas. On January 14, he was found unconscious in his cell and later pronounced dead. Although initially described by the agency as a "suspected suicide," the true cause of his death remains under investigation, further highlighting concerns about the facility's conditions and lack of effective oversight.

Community Outrage and Demands for Accountability

Minnesota's Lieutenant Governor Peggy Flanagan has called for immediate answers, saying, "We deserve to know what happened," joining voices questioning how multiple deaths could occur in such a short time within the same facility.

The case that has deeply affected the Cuban community involves Geraldo Lunas Campos, 55, who died on January 3 while in federal custody at the same center. Initially, his family accepted the official account of an attempted suicide. However, this narrative collapsed when a preliminary forensic report concluded he died of asphyxiation and classified his death as a homicide.

According to The Associated Press, the autopsy indicates death by neck and chest compression. A witness reported seeing several guards struggling with the already handcuffed Cuban, with one applying a chokehold as Lunas Campos repeatedly said he couldn't breathe. Moments later, he stopped moving.

Calls for Closure Amidst Rising Concerns

This revelation has intensified demands for the immediate closure of the center. Texas Congresswoman Verónica Escobar warned that two deaths in a month demonstrate a severe deterioration of internal conditions and reminded that Camp East Montana is operated by Acquisition Logistics LLC, a private company with no prior experience in managing detention centers, which secured a contract worth over $1.2 billion.

Common Dreams highlights that ICE inspectors identified numerous violations of federal standards months ago, including medical negligence, lack of safety protocols, and obstacles for detainees to contact their attorneys. In this context, the Cuban's death is not seen as an isolated incident but rather part of a broader pattern.

A month before Lunas Campos, Francisco Gaspar Andrés, a 49-year-old Guatemalan immigrant, also died at the facility, with ICE attributing his death to "natural causes." Now, with a forensic ruling of homicide in the Cuban's case and another death still unresolved, doubts are growing.

For many migrant families, both within and outside the United States, the fear is tangible—not an abstraction. It is the dread that a loved one might enter a detention center and never come out alive. As a former advisor to National Nurses United cited by Common Dreams put it, "ICE detention centers are operating like extermination camps."