Cuban immigrant's apparent suicide is 48th death in ICE custody during 2nd Trump administration
A 27-year-old Cuban immigrant has died of a presumed suicide, although the official cause of death remains under investigation, Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials said in a notification sent to Congress Friday.
ICE said that on April 12, a detention officer found Aled Damien Carbonell-Betancourt in his cell "in what appeared to be a suicide attempt."
"The officer immediately called a medical emergency, and staff began cardiopulmonary resuscitation. City of Miami Fire Rescue arrived at the facility and continued resuscitative efforts. Despite life-saving measures, at approximately 7:31 a.m., Miami Fire Rescue pronounced Carbonell-Betancourt dead," the agency said.
This marks the 48th death in ICE custody since Trump began his immigration crackdown upon his return to office in January 2025, a rate that averages out to one death every 10 days.
Carbonell-Betancourt entered the United States on October 30, 2024, and was released on parole with a Notice to Appear, ICE said.
The officials said ICE agents encountered Carbonell-Betancourt at Miami Dade County Jail in November 2025, after he was allegedly arrested for resisting an officer with violence.
ABC News has not independently confirmed allegations about his criminal record.
Carbonell-Betancourt was transferred to ICE custody in February and was facing removal proceedings, the agency said.
Appearing before a House subcommittee hearing Thursday, outgoing Acting ICE Director Todd Lyons said the number of deaths is high because "we do have the highest amount in detention that ICE has ever had since its inception in 2003."
"No death is what we want. We don't want anyone to die in custody," he said.
The spike in deaths has rattled the international community, with Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum condemning the situation and demanding a thorough inspection of conditions at ICE facilities.
A spokesperson for the Department of Homeland Security, which oversees U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, did not immediately respond to a request for comment from ABC News.
In a previous statement, an ICE spokesperson said, "Consistent with data over the last decade, death rates in custody are 0.009% of the detained population. As bed space has rapidly expanded, we have maintained a higher standard of care than most prisons that hold U.S. citizens -- including providing access to proper medical care. For many illegal aliens this is the best healthcare they have received their entire lives."
