U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement confirmed Tuesday that Marie Ange Blaise, a 44-year-old Haitian woman, died in federal custody at the Broward Transitional Center in Pompano Beach.
Blaise was pronounced dead on Friday night and the cause of death is under investigation, said ICE officials in a statement.
Blaise, who ICE says entered the U.S. illegally, was detained on February 12, when U.S. Customs and Border Protection apprehended her at the Henry E. Rohlsen International Airport in Saint Croix, U.S. Virgin Islands, while she was attempting to board a flight to Charlotte, North Carolina.
That same day, CBP officials issued her a “Notice of Expedited Removal” for attempting to enter the country without a valid immigrant visa. She was moved Feb. 14 to San Juan, Puerto Rico, before being transferred to other detention centers. She eventually was sent to the Broward Transitional Center on April 5.
ICE officials on Tuesday said it notified the U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s Office of Inspector General, the ICE Office of Professional Responsibility, and the Consulate of Haiti in Miami about Blaise’s death. The agency says it will release a full report on Blaise’s death within 90 days.
“ICE remains committed to ensuring that all those in its custody reside in safe, secure, and humane environments,” said ICE officials in reporting Blaise’s death. “Comprehensive medical care is provided from the moment individuals arrive and throughout the entirety of their stay.”
Since late January, ICE has reported two other deaths of detainees in federal custody in South Florida.
Genry Donaldo Ruiz-Guillen, 29, an undocumented immigrant from Honduras, died Jan. 23. The other undocumented immigrant was Maksym Chernyak, 44, of Ukraine, who died Feb. 20. Both had been hospitalized after being housed at the Krome Detention Center in south Miami-Dade.
