Salvadoran Man Dies at New Jersey ICE Detention Facility
A 41-year-old man from El Salvador died Saturday at a New Jersey immigration detention facility that has been the focus of months of protests over living conditions, marking the second death at Delaney Hall since the center reopened in May 2025. Edwin Lopez-Cornejo was pronounced dead at University Hospital in Newark after experiencing a medical emergency at the facility, according to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
Background and Detention
Lopez-Cornejo had been held at Delaney Hall in Newark since June 18, when ICE arrested him in Plainfield, New Jersey, under a reinstated removal order, the agency said. According to AP News, ICE said Lopez-Cornejo first entered the United States without authorization in August 2006, was ordered removed by a DOJ immigration judge that same year, and was deported to El Salvador in October 2006. He later re-entered the U.S. at an unknown date.
His mother, Maria Cornejo, told the New Jersey Monitor that her son had held a job since 2022 and was detained outside his home as he headed to work. Lopez-Cornejo was the father of a 12-year-old daughter and had lived in the U.S. for approximately 20 years.
The Day of His Death
The day before his death, Lopez-Cornejo told his mother he was not feeling well and that part of his face and right hand had gone numb, according to The Guardian. He had seen a doctor that day and was told tests would be run. On Saturday, he complained of dizziness and fatigue in the facility’s cafeteria before walking to the medical unit, where he collapsed. Staff performed CPR before emergency responders arrived.
U.S. Rep. Rob Menendez said ICE officials told him Lopez-Cornejo arrived at the hospital around 2:40 p.m. and was pronounced dead at 3:24 p.m., as Gothamist reported. The official cause of death remains pending further medical examination, ICE said.
Lopez-Cornejo reportedly suffered from diabetes, high blood pressure, and seizures, and took medication for these conditions. His family and advocates allege he was denied his prescribed medications while in detention, though ICE maintains he received proper medical care and was seen by medical professionals while in custody.
Second Death at Delaney Hall
Lopez-Cornejo’s death is the second at Delaney Hall since the facility reopened in May 2025 under a 15-year, $1 billion contract with GEO Group, a private prison contractor. In December 2025, Jean Wilson Brutus, a 41-year-old Haitian national, died one day after arriving at the facility from a medical emergency ruled natural causes.
According to UPI, Lopez-Cornejo is at least the 54th person to die in ICE custody since President Donald Trump returned to office. AP News reports at least 56 people have died in ICE custody during Trump’s second term, making Lopez-Cornejo the second native of El Salvador to die in ICE custody during that period.
Calls for Closure Intensify
The death has renewed demands from New Jersey officials and civil rights groups to close the 1,000-bed facility, which has been the target of months of protests over conditions including alleged spoiled food, denial of medication, and unsanitary living quarters.
“This is not the first death of a detainee at Delaney Hall, and absent decisive action, it will not be the last,” Sen. Cory Booker said in a statement, as reported by Al Jazeera. “I have visited the facility myself and witnessed these conditions firsthand, so I say this plainly: Delaney Hall must be closed immediately and permanently.”
Newark Mayor Ras Baraka said GEO Group and ICE have “repeatedly demonstrated a disregard for transparency, public oversight and the laws designed to protect the health, safety and dignity of those in their custody.” Gov. Mikie Sherrill said her administration continues to face obstruction in efforts to conduct a full health inspection of the facility.
“Every effort to block oversight raises serious questions about what is happening inside Delaney Hall and what those operating the facility are trying to hide,” Sherrill said.
Broader Concerns About ICE Custody Deaths
Advocates point to a troubling pattern. A Gothamist investigation in June found more than 70 detainees have filed federal lawsuits alleging medical neglect at Delaney Hall, including more than 30 who claim they were denied prescribed medication for chronic conditions such as asthma, epilepsy, diabetes, and cancer.
ICE changed its detainee-death reporting policy in June 2026 to no longer report deaths that occur within 30 days of someone’s release from custody. Critics say the change obscures ICE’s role in some deaths. ICE has also not publicly recognized the July 24 death of 29-year-old Priciliano Trejo in Georgia, which came nine days after ICE released him from custody while he was hospitalized in a coma.
Rep. Menendez also confirmed that another person detained by ICE died in July after suffering a seizure during processing at Delaney Hall. ICE granted the individual a discretionary release from custody after they were taken to a hospital and lost consciousness.
What’s Next
As investigations into Lopez-Cornejo’s death continue, his mother has called for accountability. “What I want is justice,” Maria Cornejo said. “I don’t want my son’s death to go unanswered. If justice isn’t served, they’ll just keep doing this, and there’s no telling how many more people in this country we might lose.”
Democratic lawmakers have pledged to continue pressing for oversight and closure of the facility. The death adds to mounting scrutiny of the broader immigration detention system under the Trump administration, with at least 56 deaths in ICE custody during his second term and calls from civil rights groups for an end to immigration detention altogether.
As Salon reported, the American Immigration Council’s Nayna Gupta argues the system is not inevitable: “We can absolutely enforce civil immigration laws without the use of mass incarceration. This is a civil legal system. It is not a criminal one.”