An Indian national, who was detained by the American customs officials last week for not carrying necessary immigration documents at the Atlanta airport, died on Tuesday in custody at an Atlanta hospital.
58-year old Atul Kumar Babubhai Patel was taken into custody by US Immigration and Customs Enforcement at the Atlanta City Detention Center for two days. The officials are stating the primary reason for his death as heart failure.
Patel had arrived at the Atlanta airport on May 10 on a flight from Ecuador.
He was denied entry by the US Customs and Border Protection as he was not possessing the necessary immigration documents, said the Immigration authorities in a statement.
He was then taken into the ICE custody last week at the Atlanta City Detention Center, where he underwent an initial medical screening. He was found to have high blood pressure and diabetes.
On Saturday, a nurse checking Patel’s blood sugar noticed he had some breathing problem. He was then shifted to a hospital, where he died.
The agency has informed the Indian consular representatives, who have notified Patel’s kin about his demise.
ICE said that it is committed to the health and welfare of all those in its custody and is “undertaking a comprehensive agency-wide review of the incident, as it does in all such cases”.
