Officials: Vietnamese man in Arizona dies in ICE custody
A Vietnamese man awaiting deportation died Tuesday while in U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement custody in Arizona, according to ICE officials.
Huy Chi Tran, 47, obtained legal permanent residency into the U.S. in 1984. But a judge ordered his removal in 2004 from the U.S. based on a criminal conviction "stemming from charges related to aggravated assault," ICE officials said in a statement Saturday.
Tran is the seventh detainee to die in ICE custody in fiscal year 2018, which began Oct. 1, 2017, according to an ICE.
Following his release from an Arizona prison in May, Tran was transferred to the Eloy Detention Center on May 28, where he awaited deportation to Vietnam.
On June 5, Tran “was found unresponsive in his residential unit,” officials said.
He was transported to the Banner Casa Grande Medical Center where he was pronounced dead on Tuesday.
ICE policy required officials to notify the local Vietnam consulate of Tran’s death.
An autopsy is pending to determine the official cause of death, officials said.
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