A Cuban man became the third U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement detainee to die while in federal custody since the beginning of the fiscal year on Oct. 1, 2017.
Luis Ramirez-Marcano, 59, died Monday afternoon at Kendall Regional Medical Center in Miami after being taken to the hospital for abdominal pain, according to a statement issued late Wednesday.
Ramirez-Marcano first taken into ICE custody on Feb. 12 and had been awaiting his deportation to Cuba. He was admitted to the hospital Feb. 17 and was there for two days before passing away Feb. 19. Medical staff said his condition continued to decline while in their care.
ICE said the cause of his death has not yet been determined. The Department of Homeland Security agency also said detainee deaths are “exceedingly rare and occur at a fraction of the rate of the U.S. detained population as a whole.”
Cuban Embassy officials were notified about Ramirez-Marcano’s death.
