A Guatemalan toddler apprehended at the U.S.-Mexico border has died after several weeks in a Texas hospital ― the fourth death of a migrant child since December.
The 2 1/2-year-old boy died on Tuesday night in El Paso, Texas, The Washington Post first reported.
The Guatemalan Consulate in Houston later confirmed the boy’s death in a release, stating that he is believed to have died from complications from pneumonia.
The boy, whose identity wasn’t revealed by authorities, was apprehended with his mother on April 3 near the Paso Del Norte Bridge, a U.S. Customs and Border Protection official told HuffPost in an email. That bridge spans the Rio Grande, connecting El Paso with the Mexican city of Ciudad Juarez.
The day after their capture, the boy’s mother reported him as sick, authorities said. He was transported to a hospital in Horizon City, and later to a children’s hospital in El Paso. His mother was released from custody on April 8, CBP said.
“At that point, the family was no longer in [Border Patrol] custody,” CBP said.
There were no immediate responses to requests for comment from the El Paso medical examiner’s office and the hospital.
The boy is at least the sixth migrant to die after crossing the border since December. Four of those deaths were children, all from Guatemala, which is gripped by a hunger crisis.
On Dec. 8, a 7-year-old girl from Guatemala died from what authorities said was dehydration and shock while in U.S. Border Patrol custody.
On Dec. 24, an 8-year-old Guatemalan boy died in U.S. custody. Initial results from an autopsy determined that he died from the flu.
On Feb. 3, a 45-year-old Mexican man in Border Patrol custody died at a Texas hospital after staff diagnosed him with cirrhosis of the liver and congestive heart failure.
On March 18, a 40-year-old Mexican man died after he was diagnosed with flu-like symptoms, liver failure and renal failure.
On April 30, 16-year-old Juan de León Gutiérrez from Guatemala died after he was reported sick at a Texas youth detention facility. He was later found to have a rare condition known as Pott’s puffy tumor, often caused by a severe sinus infection.
This story has been updated following a response from the Guatemalan consulate.