A 16-year-old boy died while in US government custody on April 30. The boy has not been identified, the Guatemalan refugee was reportedly unaccompanied when he came to the US.

According to reports, when the boy was first transferred from ICE custody to a shelter facility on April 20th, he showed no sign of illness. The next day, he became noticeably ill with a fever, chills, and a headache. He was taken to the hospital, then returned to the shelter.

After being transferred back to the shelter, the boy’s health did not improve and he was taken to the emergency room by ambulance. Later that day, he was transferred to a children’s hospital in Texas and was treated for several days in the hospital’s intensive-care unit.

The unidentified boy is the third refugee child to die in US government custody in the last six months.

Two other refugees from Guatemala, seven-year-old Jakelin Caal and 8-year-old Felipe Alonzo-Gomez, died in December after falling ill while they were being held in US government custody.

 

 

Photo: “El Paso Wall” by Jonathan McIntosh is licensed under CC BY 2.0