ICE detainee from Vietnam passes away at Houston hospital

HOUSTON — A Vietnamese woman in the custody of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's (ICE) Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO) since June 28 passed away Thursday at the Memorial Hermann-Texas Medical Center in Houston, Texas. The preliminary cause of death appears to be a brain aneurysm.

Nho Thi Nguyen, 61, was transferred to ICE custody from U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) June 28. On July 1, Nguyen collapsed while taking a shower at the Houston Contract Detention Facility. Medical professionals from the ICE Health Services Corp (IHSC) immediately responded and performed CPR on her until emergency medical technicians arrived. Nguyen was transported via ambulance to Northeast Herman Memorial Hospital in Humble, Texas. Later that day she was air-lifted to Memorial Hermann-Texas Medical Center in Houston.

Nguyen was pronounced deceased by medical personnel on July 2 at 8:55 p.m.

ICE notified the Vietnamese consulate and Nguyen’s next of kin. Consistent with ICE protocols, the appropriate state health and local law enforcement agencies have also been informed.

Nguyen was convicted Sept. 27, 2010, in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California for conspiracy and was sentenced to one year probation.

On June 27, 2015, Nguyen presented herself to CBP at Houston’s George Bush Intercontinental Airport after returning from an overseas trip.  On the same date, Nguyen was served with a notice to appear and charged with being inadmissible to the United States due to her conviction of a crime involving moral turpitude.  She was transferred to ICE custody pending a removal hearing before a federal immigration judge.

Nguyen is the sixth detainee to pass away while in ICE custody in fiscal year 2015.