The Latest: CBP to do health check on all minors after death
HOUSTON (AP) — The Latest on the death of an 8-year-old boy from Guatemala who U.S. officials say has died in government custody (all times local):
11 p.m.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection says it is conducting new medical checks on every child in its custody after the second reported death of a minor this month.
CBP said in a statement late Tuesday that it is focusing its checks on children under the age of 10.
An 8-year-old boy from Guatemala died early Tuesday while in the agency’s custody. Felipe Gomez Alonzo’s death came just weeks after 7-year-old Jakelin Caal died in a hospital shortly after being apprehended by border agents.
The statement says CBP needs the help of other government agencies to care for children it is detaining. The agency says it’s “considering options for surge medical assistance” from the U.S. Coast Guard and potentially other departments.
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6:30 p.m.
A Guatemalan official says he was told by the father of an 8-year-old boy who died in U.S. custody that the two had been traveling from their home in the Central American country to Tennessee, and that his son had been in “perfect health.”
Oscar Padilla, the Guatemalan consul in Phoenix, also confirmed Tuesday that the boy’s name was Felipe Gomez Alonzo.
The consul says he interviewed the father, 47-year-old Agustin Gomez, by telephone.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection says the boy died shortly after midnight on Christmas.
CBP says the boy was taken Monday with his father to a hospital in Alamogordo, New Mexico, where he was diagnosed with a cold and a fever, and released.
The agency says the boy was returned to the hospital Monday evening with nausea and vomiting. He died hours later.
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This story has been corrected to show that the first name of the boy who died is Felipe, not Felix.
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12:20 p.m.
U.S. immigration authorities say an 8-year-old boy from Guatemala has died in government custody, the second immigrant child to die in detention this month.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection says the boy died shortly after midnight Tuesday.
CBP says the boy showed “signs of potential illness” Monday and was taken with his father to a hospital in Alamogordo, New Mexico. There, CBP says, he was diagnosed with a cold and a fever. He was given medications and released Monday afternoon.
The agency says the boy was returned to the hospital Monday evening with nausea and vomiting. He died just hours later.
A CBP spokesman declined to elaborate Tuesday, but said details will be released shortly.
A 7-year-old Guatemalan girl died earlier this month after being apprehended by border agents.
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