Mexico to file US criminal complaints over citizens' deaths in immigration enforcement
Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum said on July 9 that her government will file criminal complaints with US state and federal prosecutors against those responsible for the deaths of Mexican citizens in US immigration custody and during enforcement operations, and will pursue civil lawsuits against the private companies that run detention centers. “We cannot turn a blind eye to the Mexicans who have died,” she said at a press conference; Foreign Minister Roberto Velasco outlined the details.
Mexico’s government counts 14 nationals who have died in ICE custody and three killed during operations, the most recent being Lorenzo Salgado Araujo, a 52-year-old shot by an ICE agent in Houston. The move follows a sharp rise in detention deaths amid the Trump administration’s deportation drive — 32 detainees died in 2025, against 11 in 2024.
The significance is in the escalation: Mexico says earlier diplomatic protests produced no results, so it is shifting to the US legal system and to civil liability for detention contractors. Such filings face steep hurdles — sovereign-immunity and jurisdictional questions over federal agents — but they create a documented record and pressure on the companies operating detention facilities under contract.