Víctor Manuel Díaz
Víctor Manuel Díaz, 36, a Nicaraguan man, died on January 14, 2026, while held by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement at Camp East Montana, a tent camp on Fort Bliss in El Paso, Texas. According to ICE, contract security staff found him unconscious and unresponsive in his room, and EMS pronounced him dead; ICE said he died of a presumed suicide, with the official cause still under investigation. His brother Yorlan Diaz said he does not believe Víctor took his own life, and his family's attorney has said that he was not depressed and that the autopsy was done by the Army rather than the El Paso medical examiner. His family has described him as someone who had come to the United States looking for a better life and wanted to help his mother.
Cause of death, as reported: Died by suicide (disputed). ICE and DHS say he died of a presumed suicide while the official cause remains under investigation, but his family and their attorney, Randall Kallinen, dispute that finding and his brother Yorlan Diaz says he does not believe Victor took his own life.
Reported by: U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (the agency that held him); Department of Homeland Security (the agency that held him); Family attorney Randall Kallinen (family or their lawyers); His brother Yorlan Diaz (family or their lawyers); Contractor on 911 call (witnesses).
News reports (16)
- Detainee Death Report: Diaz, Victor Manuel
- Minnesota detainees denied visitors at Fort Bliss following 3rd death at ICE facility
- ICE reports death of person in custody in El Paso
- Third immigrant detainee at facility in El Paso has died, ICE says
- Medical examiner rules ICE detainee’s death at Texas facility a homicide
- The black hole of Camp East Montana: Three deaths in 44 days at the largest migrant detention center in the US
- Immigrant deaths intensify scrutiny of detention camp as El Paso becomes deportation hub
- ICE Was Warned About Conditions at Fort Bliss Migrant Jail. Then 2 Men Died.
- Nicaraguan man's death at troubled Texas detention camp was reported as a suicide, 911 records show
- Deaths of migrants in ICE custody raises concerns
- After El Paso medical examiner ruled migrant’s death a homicide, ICE sent next body to Army hospital
- ICE detainee dies of 'presumed suicide' at Texas detention facility, agency says - ABC News
- Six deaths in six weeks: What to know about ICE detentions in Texas
- ICE detention deaths are on a record pace. One Texas facility bears the brunt
- “You’re Only Getting Out Deported or Dead”: Abusive US Immigration Detention at Ft. Bliss | HRW
- ICE Is a Death Machine