A 44-year-old woman from Haiti died in a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement facility in Florida last Friday, the agency said.
The cause of her death is still under investigation.
Marie Ange Blaise had been detained since Feb. 12, when she was stopped by U.S. Customs and Border Protection at Henry E. Rohlsen International Airport in Saint Croix while trying to board a flight to Charlotte, North Carolina, according to ICE.
Blaise had not legally entered the U.S. territory.
RELATED STORY | New executive order threatens to cut off federal funding for sanctuary cities
She was then taken to ICE Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO) Miami’s staging facility in San Juan, Puerto Rico, on Feb. 14, according to ICE.
A week later, Blaise was transferred to Richwood Correctional Center in Oakdale, Louisiana.
ICE said she was later transferred to the Broward Transitional Center in Pompano Beach, Florida, on April 5, where she later died.
It’s unclear why Blaise was transferred to various facilities.
According to ICE’s online records, this is the fourth person to die in custody since January.
“ICE remains committed to ensuring that all those in its custody reside in safe, secure, and humane environments. Comprehensive medical care is provided from the moment individuals arrive and throughout the entirety of their stay,” ICE said in a statement. “All people in ICE custody receive medical, dental and mental health screening and 24-hour emergency care at each detention facility. At no time during detention is a detained illegal alien denied emergent care.”
