Mexican national becomes youngest person to die in ICE custody during Trump's second term
Royer Perez-Jimenez was being held at the Glades County Detention Center when he was found unresponsive. A report about toxic chemicals released earlier this year focused on that detention center
A Mexican teenager died in Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) custody. Royer Perez-Jimenez, 19, was found unresponsive in a Florida detention facility in the early morning hours of March 16. His death was announced in a press release from ICE dated March 18. The teenager’s death is raising more questions about detention facility conditions. Here’s what we know about Perez-Jimenez’s death and the trend of people dying in ICE custody.
A teenager is dead after being detained by ICE
Royer Perez-Jimenez, a Mexican national, is the youngest person who has died in ICE custody during President Donald Trump’s second term. The teenager was being held at the Glades County Detention Center in Moore Haven, Florida. According to a press release, Perez-Jimenez was found unconscious and unresponsive by a detention officer at 2:34 a.m. in his room. He was declared dead at 2:51 a.m., but an investigation into the death is ongoing.
According to ICE, Perez-Jimenez is presumed to have died from suicide. Perez-Jimenez was arrested on Jan. 21 by the Edgewater Police Department. He was charged with misdemeanor fraud for impersonation and misdemeanor resisting an officer. He was placed into an ICE detainer on Jan. 22 and was transferred to ICE custody on Feb. 21. ICE transported him to the Glades County Detention Center on Feb. 26.
“At intake, Perez was evaluated by medical staff,” reads the press release. “He denied any behavioral health issues or concerns and answered ‘no’ to all suicide screening questions.”
Perez-Jimenez’s death is drawing more attention to poor conditions in Florida immigration detention centers
A report from multiple civil rights and advocacy groups released in January looked specifically at the conditions of the Glades County Detention Center. The report found that the detention center posed a serious risk to people’s health. Along with the misuse of industrial chemical disinfectant, the report found that detainees were at risk of carbon monoxide poisoning. Most troubling, ICE agents regularly used pepper spray as a form of punishment, adding more irritants to the air.
“This is just one of several immigration detention facilities in Florida in recent years in which we’ve seen a troubling disregard for the health of people detained or the surrounding environment,” Dominique Burkhardt, Earthjustice attorney, said in a statement. “The courageous effort by advocates and those detained to expose these conditions is vital in an immigration detention system that would otherwise operate as a black box.”
There have been concerns about the conditions of immigration detention centers for years. Activists have been calling attention to the subpar sleeping accommodations, chemical pollutants, and general unhygienic conditions.
This isn’t the first ICE custody death this year
There have been at least 10 deaths in ICE custody so far in 2026. Others who have died in custody include Victor Manuel Díaz, 36; Heber Sanchez Domínguez, 34; Luis Beltrán Yanez–Cruz, 68; Luis Gustavo Núñez Caceres, 42; Jairo Garcia-Hernandez, 27; Lorth Sim, 59; Mohammad Nazeer Paktiawal, 41; Emanuel Cleeford Damas, 56; Pejman Karshenas Najafabadi, 59; and Alberto Gutiérrez Reyes, 48.
Forty-two people have died in ICE custody so far in President Trump’s second term, a record number. ICE officials have denied the claim. However, ICE detentions have skyrocketed under President Trump’s second term. According to data, the number of people in ICE custody peaked at more than 70,000 in January 2026.
The current federal government has put a lot of focus on mass arrests, detention, and deportations at the expense of people’s lives. Perez-Jimenez is the latest victim, but likely will not be the last of President Trump’s immigration crackdown.