During President Donald Trump’s second term, the number of deaths among immigrants in U.S. detention centers skyrocketed.
Published June 26, 2026
UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Turk has called for an independent investigation into the significant increase in deaths in migrant detention centers during President Donald Trump’s second term.
In a statement Friday, Turk expressed concern about the lack of transparency surrounding the deadly crashes, which have killed at least 19 people so far this year, according to U.S. government figures.
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“Those responsible for violating the law must be held to account, and the rights of victims’ families to truth, justice, reparation and a guarantee of non-recurrence must be protected,” the UN human rights chief said.
Deaths in immigration detention centers soared during President Trump’s second term in what rights groups and immigration lawyers say is a byproduct of systemic neglect, inhumane conditions and abuse.
The Trump administration aims to mass deport immigrants in the United States and rapidly expand a network of immigrant detention centers, some run by private contractors.
Trump said in a social media post Friday that his administration “has by far the highest average daily arrest rate by ICE and CBP, including total detentions with final orders of removal, than any other president.”
The death toll of Georgian man Mamuka Altomeradze in a Louisiana detention center on June 4th brought the death toll to 19 so far this year, compared to 33 last year and 11 in 2024.
“The death rate in ICE custody is at the highest level in more than a decade and has more than doubled since the beginning of President Trump’s second term,” watchdog group Human Rights Watch said in a report on deaths in custody earlier this month. “This rate is nearly four times the rate under the Biden administration and more than 2.5 times the rate under the first Trump administration.”
According to the report, the 52 people who died in custody during President Trump’s second term ranged in age from 19 to 75 and represented 20 nationalities.
Turk wrote Friday that there were “questions regarding the use of force” at such facilities and that five of the deaths recorded in 2026 were classified as suicides.
He also expressed concern about the reported use of solitary confinement. Solitary confinement is associated with an increased risk of suicide and is considered a form of torture by the United Nations after a period of 15 days.
“All of these factors exacerbate vulnerability and raise serious concerns about whether some of the deaths in ICE custody could have been prevented,” he said.
