A 52-year-old woman died by suicide in US Border Patrol custody at the Yuma station in Arizona, according to Democratic Congresswoman Pramila Jayapal. The woman, a Chinese national, had initially been detained in California for overstaying her B1/B2 visitor visa before being transferred to Arizona, where she remained until her death on March 29.

The Tucson Sentinel first reported the incident, noting that border patrol officials did not initially follow internal policies regarding the public acknowledgment of deaths in custody. A Border Patrol statement later confirmed that the woman, along with a 38-year-old man, had been arrested on March 26 near Needles, California, for unspecified criminal activity.

Jayapal, a ranking member of the House subcommittee overseeing immigration, stated that initial reports indicate that required welfare checks were not performed by Customs and Border Protection (CBP) agents before the woman’s death. Surveillance footage reportedly showed the woman creating a noose and tying it around her neck, with no medical response occurring for nearly two hours.

Jayapal called for answers on the failure to conduct welfare checks, falsely record them, and the lack of guard intervention. She also expressed concerns about the conditions at immigration detention facilities under the second Trump administration. Border Patrol stated that they take all custody deaths seriously and investigate them thoroughly.

In the US, individuals can contact the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 988, chat on 988lifeline.org, or text HOME to 741741 for support. In the UK and Ireland, Samaritans can be reached on freephone 116 123, email jo@samaritans.org, or jo@samaritans.ie. In Australia, Lifeline is available at 13 11 14. More international helplines can be found on befrienders.org.

Source: https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/apr/06/chinese-woman-border-patrol-arizona-suicide