California Launches Investigation After Man Dies In ICE Custody: 'Shaking And Complaining Of Pain'

Authorities in California are investigating the death of a 39-year-old man while under ICE custody.

Ismael Ayala-Uribe was taken on Sunday from the Adelanto ICE Processing Center to a hospital for surgery on an abscess on his buttock, the Associated Press reported. However, staff at the hospital found him unresponsive around 2:30 a.m.

The outlet added that ICE stated that Ayala-Uribe suffered from hypertension and tachycardia.

According to the Los Angeles Times, Ayala-Uribe began complaining that he felt sick about two weeks after arriving at the facility. By Thursday last week, his situation had deteriorated, with staff noting that he was "shaking and complaining of pain in his rear."

The newspaper reported that according to internal emails, staff members flagged his condition as potentially life-threatening. He was taken medical center, but was cleared and returned to detention. He was not scheduled for surgery or taken to the hospital until three days later.

Since January, more than a dozen people have died in federal immigration detention.

Ayala-Uribe applied for and received Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals protection in 2012. He was denied renewal in 2016 following two DUI convictions.