Man who died in ICE custody at Otay Mesa was misidentified, county medical examiner records show

A man who died Oct. 24 in federal immigration custody at the Otay Mesa Detention Center was not the person U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement first named, according to the San Diego County Medical Examiner's Office.

ICE announced on Oct. 27 that a 43-year-old Guatemalan man it identified as Roberto Jimenez Gutierrez died at the detention center at 7488 Calzada de la Fuente in Otay Mesa. The Medical Examiner's public case log lists the decedent as Guillermo Pascual Verganza, born Nov. 10, 1983, which made him 42. The county lists the time of death as 12:23 p.m. Oct. 24, the same time ICE gave.

According to the Medical Examiner, Pascual was a detainee "under observation" who became unresponsive in his single-occupancy cell. Facility staff called 911 and began lifesaving measures, and responding emergency crews continued them until death was pronounced at the scene. The cause of death is listed as pending, the manner as "pending investigation," and ICE as the investigating agency.

ICE's account says staff found the man unresponsive in his assigned safety cell late that morning. Medical staff began CPR at about 11:38 a.m., paramedics with the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection arrived at about 11:52 a.m. and continued treatment, and a paramedic pronounced him dead at about 12:23 p.m. ICE said an autopsy would determine the official cause and manner of death.

ICE said its San Diego Enforcement and Removal Operations office arrested the man in Escondido on Oct. 9, reinstated a prior final order of removal and transferred him to Otay Mesa pending removal to Mexico. The agency's release says the man under the Jimenez name was ordered removed to Mexico by an immigration judge on Oct. 23, 2006, and was removed that day, then removed again in March and April 2008. ICE said Customs and Border Protection apprehended him at the Paso del Norte Port of Entry in El Paso, Texas, in November 2016 and released him pending review of an application for relief, and that he did not appear for a scheduled appointment.

The release also lists a July 2024 conviction for selling liquor to a minor and prior arrests for battery against a spouse, violating a court order, child abuse, disorderly conduct, giving false identification to a peace officer and being under the influence of drugs. ICE did not say where those cases were filed.

Relatives disputed that record. A niece and nephew told KPBS the man's name was Guillermo Pascual and that the criminal history ICE published was false. KPBS reported that ICE did not answer its questions about the man's identity before publication. ICE has not issued a corrected release or said whether the criminal and immigration history in its Oct. 27 statement belongs to the man who died.

ICE said it notified the DHS Office of Inspector General, its Office of Professional Responsibility, next of kin and the Guatemalan consulate. The agency said, "ICE is committed to ensuring that all those in custody reside in safe, secure, and humane environments," and that detainees receive medical, dental and mental health screening and around-the-clock emergency care.

CoreCivic, the private contractor that operates the facility, told 10News, "We are deeply saddened by the loss of anyone in our care," and said ICE was notified immediately.

County Supervisors Terra Lawson-Remer and Paloma Aguirre on Oct. 27 asked ICE and CoreCivic to turn over records and video and to guarantee county health inspectors access to the facility, 10News reported. Aguirre asked for "a timeline of this person's care from intake to death," including health conditions noted at intake, requests for medical help and when staff last checked on him. Lawson-Remer said the county should not have to sue the federal government "every time a public health officer needs to walk inside" an ICE facility. The county sued earlier this year to gain an inspection, which took place in June.

Rep. Mike Levin and U.S. Sens. Alex Padilla and Adam Schiff also wrote federal officials seeking answers about the death, according to Times of San Diego.