Migrant teen DIES in US custody: Single Honduran boy, 17, dies after being found unconscious in a Florida shelter
- Angel Eduardo Maradiaga Espinoza was found unconscious in Safety Harbor
- Was pronounced dead at the hospital after an hour of CPR attempts
- Honduras has demanded an “exhaustive” investigation into his death
A 17-year-old migrant boy who entered the US without a parent or guardian died in Florida state prison on Wednesday.
Angel Eduardo Maradiaga Espinoza, of Honduras, was found unconscious on May 10 at Gulf Coast Jewish Family and Community Services in Safety Harbor.
He was taken to a hospital and was pronounced dead after an hour of life-saving resuscitation attempts.
Espinoza had been in the shelter since May 5 and entered the US without a parent or guardian. He was one of 8,681 unaccompanied migrant children in custody.
The fatal accident at the Office of Refugee Resettlement facility is only the second on record, and the first under President Joe Biden’s administration.
A 17-year-old migrant boy died in US custody in Florida on Wednesday. Pictured are migrants waiting to be admitted to the United States in El Paso, Texas, on Friday
“The United States Department of Health and Human Services is deeply saddened by this tragic loss and our hearts go out to the family with whom we are in contact,” the department said in a statement.
The Honduran government has demanded an “exhaustive investigation” by border officials already dealing with the processing of migrants following the lifting of Title 42.
The Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR) is responsible for housing and care for migrant children crossing the border without legal guardians.
Border officials are required by federal law to hand over unaccompanied minors to ORR within 72 hours.
The unaccompanied minors are hosted in shelters until the age of 18 or are claimed by a sponsor in the US