Border Officials Investigate Newborn’s Tragic Death After Migrant Mother’s Emergency Hospital Transfer

The February death of a newborn baby whose mother was an Angolan migrant picked up near Ajo, Arizona, is under review by U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP). Officials from the CBP’s Office of Professional Responsibility are investigating the incident, alongside the Department of Homeland Security’s Office of Inspector General.

On February 25, Border Patrol agents encountered a group of 12 migrants, including a pregnant woman, near Lukeville, Arizona, approximately 110 miles southwest of Tucson. Communication challenges arose as the woman spoke what agents believed to be French. She was transported to the Ajo Station, where she arrived at 2:55 p.m.

About 20 minutes later, a nurse practitioner evaluated the woman, who was about eight months pregnant and complained of abdominal pain. Given her medical history, the nurse requested an ambulance to take her to Abrazo Hospital West Campus in Goodyear, Arizona, 100 miles away. The ambulance arrived at 3:33 p.m. and reached the hospital around 5:34 p.m.

Early the next morning, the woman underwent an emergency cesarean section due to a detected fetal heart defect. Despite efforts to resuscitate the newborn, the baby was declared dead at 2:45 a.m. The Maricopa County Medical Examiner’s Office conducted an autopsy on February 27, with results pending.

In February, Tucson Sector Border Patrol agents recorded 49,451 encounters. Highlights from a weekly review by Chief John R. Modlin reveal 11,800 interactions during one week alone. Since mid-September 2023, the remote desert west of Lukeville has seen increased migrant crossings, despite barriers installed during the Trump administration.

Under a 2021 appropriations law, CBP must report deaths in DHS custody. This mandate followed the December 2018 death of a 7-year-old girl in Border Patrol custody. Despite efforts to improve medical training and expand units like BORSTAR, migrant deaths continue to occur.

In a report for fiscal year 2022, CBP reviewed the deaths of 171 people in custody. Last September, an infant girl died at the Nogales Border Patrol station, despite extensive efforts to save her. That incident remains under review with no public report released yet.