CBP Confirms Man Found Suffering Heart Attack on Christmas Day Died the Following Day

U.S. Customs and Border Protection reported the fatal outcome of a migrant found on Christmas Day after showing signs of medical distress.

According to the agency's summary of events, agents assigned to the Del Rio Border Patrol Station in Texas encountered and apprehended a man who was sitting in a chair near the Rio Grande River, about four miles west of Del Rio.

The man told agents he was having trouble breathing and experiencing pain in his chest and left arm. Agents then placed him in a vehicle and transported him to Val Verde Regional Medical Center in Del Rio. Once at the hospital, medical staff determined the individual was suffering an active heart attack and were able to stabilize him.

However, after spending just over six hours receiving medical treatment in Del Rio, CBP contract personnel who were monitoring the man alerted Del Rio station management that hospital staff were preparing to transfer him by air to Methodist Hospital Metropolitan in San Antonio, where he would receive more advanced care.

After an approximately one-hour flight, the Mexican national arrived in San Antonio, where hospital personnel continued treatment. According to the agency, he was sedated, intubated and admitted to the hospital's intensive care unit.

At that time, hospital staff advised Border Patrol agents that the man was suffering from sepsis and low potassium levels. At 3:02 a.m. on Dec. 26, medical personnel informed agents that the man had gone into cardiac arrest but was successfully revived. However, the agency said doctors were having difficulty stabilizing him, and at about 7 a.m. he went into cardiac arrest again.

Nineteen minutes later, the ICU physician pronounced the man dead.

According to the news release, the Bexar County Medical Examiner took custody of the body and advised the CBP Office of Professional Responsibility that an autopsy would not be performed.

Nearly three weeks after the man's death, CBP OPR is still reviewing the incident and has notified the Department of Homeland Security Office of Inspector General, in line with CBP policy on notification and review procedures for certain deaths and deaths in custody.