Venezuelan Sonimar Arenas asked for justice and an independent investigation to clarify the death of her brother Jesús Manuel, who died on July 13 while in the custody of the Immigration and Customs Enforcement Service (ICE) during a transfer between detention centers in Georgia.

At a press conference in Washington, accompanied by Democratic congressmen and activists, Arenas questioned the care her brother received during his detention and assured that immigration authorities ignored his requests related to his health status.

The woman stated that before the transfer she asked the ICE agents to allow Jesús Manuel to take the medications he needed with him, but noted that they only authorized him to keep one of the four treatments he used.

Family points out possible failures in medical care

According to Arenas' testimony, his brother suffered from hypertension, chronic anxiety and depression, conditions that required medical monitoring.

Jesús Manuel was arrested on July 9 at his home in Georgia. According to information provided by ICE to the family, the arrest was related to a deportation order.

Arenas reported that that same day her brother contacted her to inform her that they had not given her the medication that she had been allowed to carry during the detention process.

The family member maintained that the lack of adequate access to her treatment could have influenced the outcome and asked that the authorities determine if there were omissions during her custody.

ICE reported death due to suspected cardiac arrest

The official version of ICE indicates that Jesús Manuel was found unconscious around 7:30 in the morning of July 13, while he was being transferred from the Irwin detention center to another facility in southern Georgia.

The agency reported that resuscitation maneuvers were performed and he was later taken to a county hospital, where he was pronounced dead approximately an hour later.

So far, authorities have not publicly reported a final conclusion on the circumstances of the death.

Family seeks to fulfill wish to be buried in Venezuela

During the conference, Sonimar Arenas recalled that his brother came to the United States in search of new opportunities and described the impact that his death had on his family.

The Venezuelan explained that, when reviewing Jesús Manuel's personal documents, she found a reference to the song "Venezuela", in which he expressed his desire to return to his country to be buried.

For this reason, he started a fundraising campaign on GoFundMe with a goal of $7,500 to cover the expenses related to the transfer of his remains. So far, he had raised $665.

Jesús Manuel's mother lives in Venezuela and, according to his sister, he had not visited the country for eight years.

Congressmen question ICE's actions

During the event in Washington, Democratic congressmen Delia Ramírez, Jesús “Chuy” García and Adelita Grijalva criticized the policies of the immigration agency and asked for changes in the detention system.

The legislators also mentioned other recent deaths related to immigration operations, among them the cases of Mexican Lorenzo Salgado and Colombian Johan Sebastián in Maine.

Ramírez also supported the H.R. initiative. 7190, known as the Melt ICE Act, which proposes withdrawing funding from the agency and closing immigration detention centers.

The family of Jesús Manuel continues to request that what happened during his last days in ICE custody be clarified and that possible responsibilities be determined.

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