Several detainees at a Texas ICE detention facility claim in sworn court declarations that they heard a Cuban immigrant, whose death was later ruled a homicide, pleading for medication shortly before hearing what sounded like guards slamming him to the ground.
The detainee, Geraldo Lunas Campos, died on January 3 while being held at Camp East Montana, an Immigration and Customs Enforcement detention site operating as a tent facility on the grounds of the Fort Bliss Army base near El Paso. The Department of Homeland Security confirmed his death, which is the third reported fatality at the location since it began operations last year.
Last week, an autopsy conducted by the El Paso County deputy medical examiner determined that Campos’ cause of death was “asphyxia due to neck and torso compression.” The ruling classified the death as a homicide.
In response, attorneys representing Campos’ family filed an emergency court petition to stop the deportation of detainees who say they witnessed events surrounding his death. A federal judge approved the request, allowing those individuals to remain in the country for now. The legal filing references allegations that guards restrained Campos in a manner that cut off his breathing.
According to ABC News, multiple detainees submitted sworn declarations this week describing what they say they heard on the day Campos died. One detainee, Henry Bolano, stated that Campos repeatedly asked officers for his asthma medication.
“The guard then said, ‘Shut up or we’re going to make you faint,’” Bolano wrote. “The last thing I heard was Geraldo speak in a voice that sounded like he couldn’t breathe. He said, ‘Let go of me. You’re asphyxiating me.’”
“Then there was silence,” Bolano continued.
Another detainee, Santo Jesus Flores, said the situation quickly escalated after the request for medication.
“I heard Geraldo scream that he could not breathe,” Flores wrote. “I could hear them trying to revive him, but they could not keep him alive.” He added that the sounds reminded him of “the slamming of a person’s body against the floor or the wall.”
The Department of Homeland Security did not respond to questions about the sworn statements. In an earlier public statement, DHS said Campos experienced medical distress after becoming disruptive while waiting for medication and was placed in segregation, where staff called for medical assistance. DHS records indicate Campos had prior criminal convictions and was detained following an immigration enforcement action in New York.
