Summary of Incident: Man from Mexico with heart disease dies while illegally crossing the border.

This notification is being issued to the public pursuant to the CBP policy regarding Notification and Review Procedures for Certain Deaths and Deaths in Custody and the Department of Homeland Security FY 2021 Appropriation (H. Rept. 116-458) reporting requirements related to CBP-involved deaths. 

 On October 25, 2024, at approximately 5:45 a.m., Border Patrol Agents (BPA) assigned to the Santa Teresa Station (STN) encountered a man who was a citizen of Mexico, with a group of aliens illegally in the U.S. approximately 3.5 miles west of the Santa Teresa Port of Entry and approximately 100 yards north of the United States/Mexico border. The man told BPAs he felt sick, complained of pain in his throat, and requested water. The BPAs provided the man water. 
 
At approximately 5:51 a.m., a responding BPA arrived in a transport van. BPAs placed the man and five other aliens in the secured section of the transport van. None, to include the man, were restrained with handcuffs during transportation. The BPA began to drive the man and the other aliens to STN. On the way, one of the aliens in the van alerted the BPA that the man was in medical distress. The BPA stopped the transport van to assess his condition, in a parking lot located at the intersection of Pete Domenici Boulevard and Bi-National Way in Santa Teresa, NM, approximately 3.2 miles northeast of where BPAs first encountered the man.  
 
At approximately 5:58 a.m., the BPA requested assistance via radio from a Border Patrol emergency medical technician (EMT) and reported that the man had become unresponsive. A BPA following in another vehicle stopped and initiated cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) on the man in the rear passenger seat area of the transport vehicle. 
 
At approximately 6:01 a.m., STN personnel contacted the Mesilla Valley Regional Dispatch Authority by phone and requested assistance from emergency medical services (EMS). 
 
At approximately 6:20 a.m., American Medical Response EMS personnel arrived at the scene, assumed primary medical care of the man, and transported him to the Hospitals of Providence Transmountain Campus (HPTC) in El Paso, TX. A BPA followed the ambulance and established hospital watch on the man. At approximately 6:53 a.m., a doctor at the hospital pronounced the man deceased. 
 
On October 25, 2024, at approximately 11:17 a.m., El Paso County Office of the Medical Examiner (OME) personnel performed an autopsy and determined the cause of death was atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease and the manner of death was natural. 

U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) is America's frontline: the nation's largest law enforcement organization and the world's first unified border management agency. The 65,000+ men and women of CBP protect America on the ground, in the air, and on the seas. We facilitate safe, lawful travel and trade and ensure our country's economic prosperity. We enhance the nation's security through innovation, intelligence, collaboration, and trust.