A St. Louis man who died while in the custody of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement never received a mental health evaluation, ICE said. Previous reporting by St. Louis Public Radio uncovered that Brayan Garzón-Rayo died by suicide.
ICE released a detainee death report that includes a timeline of Garzón-Rayo's immigration history, dating to Nov. 30, 2023, when he was detained by U.S. Border Patrol near San Ysidro, California. The report says that Garzón-Rayo, who is from Colombia, entered the U.S. illegally. He'd been living in St. Louis since arriving in the country.
St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department officers arrested Garzón-Rayo, 27, on March 11, according to ICE, and he was charged with attempting to use a credit card that wasn't his, a misdemeanor.
After Garzón-Rayo was released from the St. Louis jail on March 25, the agency took custody of him and transported him 100 miles from his family to a jail in Rolla, according to the report.
The report details that, days after he was booked in Phelps County, Garzón-Rayo's medical screening indicated he had a slew of health issues, including labored breathing, anxiety and a self-reported history of a heart murmur.
Garzón-Rayo denied experiencing suicidal thoughts, self-harm, hopelessness or depression, according to the report.
ICE reports a nurse scheduled a follow-up appointment to check on the heart murmur, but it was canceled the same day by an advanced provider because the 27-year-old had "no hypertension or history of cardiovascular medications or diagnoses."
On March 29, a registered nurse diagnosed Garzón-Rayo with tuberculosis and sent him to an emergency room after he experienced severe head pain, body aches, sweating, rapid breathing and an elevated heart rate. He also subsequently tested positive for the coronavirus while at the ER.
The next day, he returned to the jail. A nurse evaluated Garzón-Rayo after he complained of nausea, vomiting and stomach pain consistent with an account from Garzón-Rayo's mother, Lucy Garzón. A nurse administered a single dose of anti-nausea medication.
Garzón-Rayo was supposed to have a mental health evaluation but never did. It was rescheduled twice, first on April 4 due to short staffing that day and on April 5 because he tested positive for COVID-19.
Jail staff found Garzón-Rayo unresponsive in his cell with a blanket wrapped around his neck on April 7, according to the ICE report.
An official close to the investigation, who had viewed security camera footage, previously told STLPR that Garzón-Rayo was alone in his cell when he hanged himself with a bedsheet. The official, who was not authorized to make comments publicly, spoke to STLPR on the condition of anonymity.
Jail staff attempted to resuscitate Garzón-Rayon before transferring him to Phelps Health Hospital, according to the report. He was transported by helicopter to Mercy South at 2:26 a.m. on April 8.
Hospital staff declared him brain dead about 12 hours later, according to the report.
In an interview with STLPR last month, Lucy Garzón said jail detainees told her that her son had attempted to injure himself and had complained about severe stomach pains. She said she is worried jail conditions could have pushed him to inflict self-harm.
The Phelps County Sheriff's Department, which operates the jail, did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Monday. The department had previously not responded to a list of questions about jail conditions, whether Garzón-Rayo harmed himself in the days leading up to his death and if he was on suicide watch.
The 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline is a hotline for individuals in crisis or for those looking to help someone else. To speak with a trained listener, call 988. Visit 988lifeline.org for crisis chat services or for more information.
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