Mexico seeks US charges over deaths tied to immigration enforcement
Mexico says 17 citizens have died in US immigration custody or operations since Donald Trump returned to office.
By James Whitfield · Staff Writer
3 min read
Mexico has started bringing complaints to state prosecutors in the United States over the deaths of Mexican citizens in immigration detention and enforcement actions, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said Tuesday. The move puts Mexico’s government on a legal track as it presses US authorities over deaths it links to the Trump administration’s immigration crackdown.
The Mexican government says 17 of its citizens have died during US immigration operations or while in custody since President Donald Trump returned to office in January last year. The Foreign Ministry said Mexico’s consular network is helping present cases to state prosecutors.
Mexico also plans to file a complaint with the US Department of Justice through its embassy in Washington, according to the ministry. The government has not said in the announcement which state prosecutors have received complaints or what specific charges it wants them to pursue.
Detention centers targeted
The Foreign Ministry said Mexico has sent cease-and-desist letters to detention centers where Mexican nationals have died. The first letter went to the Adelanto detention center in California, where the Mexican government says four Mexican citizens have died.
Mexico says the letters demand an end to practices that may have played a role in the deaths. The ministry cited delays in medical treatment and detention policies it says do not meet medical and prison standards.
Foreign Minister Roberto Velasco Alvarez has also written to Volker Turk, the United Nations high commissioner for human rights, according to the ministry. Velasco asked Turk’s office to request information from US authorities and examine whether the deaths are consistent with Washington’s international obligations.
Houston shooting preceded the announcement
The steps follow measures announced last week by President Claudia Sheinbaum after a US Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent shot and killed Mexican citizen Lorenzo Salgado Araujo during a July 7 raid in Houston, Texas, according to Al Jazeera and Reuters. The shooting intensified pressure on Mexico’s government to respond to deaths involving its citizens in US immigration actions.
Sheinbaum said Monday that the issue extended beyond her administration and urged Mexicans to stand with compatriots living in the United States. She said Mexico was not seeking a confrontation with Washington, but that it could not remain silent.
“We must raise our voices when there are human rights violations against our fellow citizens,” Sheinbaum said.
The Foreign Ministry’s announcement marks a shift from diplomatic protest toward legal complaints inside the US system. Mexico is asking prosecutors and federal officials to examine deaths that it says occurred in detention or during immigration enforcement, while also seeking international scrutiny through the UN human rights office.
This story draws on original reporting from Al Jazeera.