A 50-year-old Mexican man died earlier this month while in Border Patrol custody in Marfa, after suffering what Customs and Border Protection (CBP) described as an apparent seizure.
According to CBP the man, identified in Presidio County documents as Maros Baray-Magallanes, was taken into custody on February 17th around 5 p.m. after allegedly entering the U.S. illegally.
The incident began around 5:20 a.m. on February 18th, when according to witness testimony from on-duty Border Patrol Agent Gaberial Vega, Magallanes “became ill in his cell.” Agents performed CPR and called Marfa EMS, who arrived and also performed CPR, but were unable to revive the man.
He was pronounced dead about an hour later, at 6:13 a.m.
It's not clear where Magallanes was taken into custody or how exactly he tried to enter the U.S. illegally.
The Presidio County Sheriff’s Office is currently investigating the death, along with CBP’s Office of Internal Affairs.
Presidio County Judge Cinderela Guevara has ordered an autopsy from South Plains Forensic Pathology in Lubbock. A preliminary autopsy is expected back within the next few weeks, but it could be months before the final autopsy results are available.
