Demonstrators clash with ICE in Minneapolis, intensifying protests
Protests intensified in Minneapolis as thousands of people clashed with ICE over enforcement tactics following a fatal shooting.
A Nicaraguan immigrant arrested by immigration agents in Minneapolis and at risk of deportation has died in a detention center in El Paso, Texas, according to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
Victor Manuel Diaz, 36, from Nicaragua, became the third inmate to die at the vast detention facility known as Camp East Montana.
ICE announced in a report released on Sunday, January 18th that he was pronounced dead on Wednesday, January 14th. He was found dead in an apparent suicide. He received his final dismissal order on January 12th.
Diaz was detained by ICE agents on January 6 during an operation in Minneapolis, Minnesota, where thousands of federal agents have surged as part of President Donald Trump’s immigration enforcement efforts. The Minnesota operation has been plagued by controversy, including the Jan. 7 shooting death of Renee Nicole Good by ICE agents.
Francisco Gaspar Cristóbal Andrés was the first person at the El Paso facility to die. The 48-year-old man from Guatemala was taken to the hospital on November 16th and later died on December 3rd.
The second detainee, Cuban immigrant Gerardo Lunas Campos, 55, died on January 3. His death is considered a likely homicide.
Camp East Montana opens in August
Camp East Montana began accepting detainees in August 2025. The massive detention facility built on Fort Bliss land housed 3,080 detainees as of December 19th.
Civil rights activists and U.S. Rep. Veronica Escobar (D-El Paso) have expressed concern about conditions inside the facility.
The El Paso Times, part of the USA TODAY Network, reported that the facility received nearly 90 emergency 911 health calls in its first 15 weeks of operation. The Washington Post reported multiple violations during construction, and the American Civil Liberties Union reported acts of physical violence against detainees and attempts to force detainees to leave their countries.
Since January 1, at least six immigrants have died in immigration detention facilities across the United States.
Jeff Abbott covers the border for the El Paso Times. Contact details are as follows:jdabbott@usatodayco.com; @palabrasdeabajo Twitter and @palabrasdeabajo.bsky.social At Blue Sky.
