HUMSI — Human Security Initiative

Human Impact Project

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Cuban man, 38, witnesses guard put foot on detainee's neck before death in El Paso ICE facility

Jan 2026 · El Paso, TX, Cuba

Gonzalo, a 38-year-old Cuban man who traveled from Cuba through the Darién Gap over 12 days — during which he witnessed sexual violence and was robbed multiple times — was detained for approximately two months in an immigration detention facility in El Paso, Texas. He described witnessing guards violently restrain a cellmate during a protest over detention conditions. 'They put a foot on his neck,' he said. The detainee later died. Gonzalo's account is consistent with reporting about the death of Cuban detainee Geraldo Lunas Campos, whose autopsy classified the death as a homicide caused by 'asphyxia due to neck and torso compression' during restraint by guards. Gonzalo was later deported to Mexico.

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