A 41-year-old Salvadoran national died at the Delaney Hall Detention Facility in Newark, New Jersey, on Aug. 1 after suffering a medical emergency, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officials announced Monday. The detainee, identified as Edwin Lopez-Cornejo, had illegally re-entered the United States following a previous deportation.
Staff with the GEO Group, the private company managing the facility, and medical personnel responded to Lopez-Cornejo's emergency and contacted 911. The official cause of death is pending a medical examination. ICE stated that Lopez-Cornejo received appropriate medical care during his detention and that the agency has notified oversight offices, the Consulate of El Salvador, and next of kin.
Lopez-Cornejo first entered the U.S. without inspection in August 2006 and was ordered removed by a Department of Justice immigration judge on Aug. 25, 2006. He was deported to El Salvador on Oct. 19, 2006. He later re-entered the U.S. illegally on an undisclosed date before being arrested by ICE in Plainfield, New Jersey, on June 18. He was being held at Delaney Hall pending the reinstatement of his prior removal order.
New Jersey officials, including Governor Mikie Sherrill and Newark Mayor Ras J. Baraka, have used Lopez-Cornejo's death to renew calls for the closure of Delaney Hall. "This tragedy is another painful reminder of why Delaney Hall should be closed," Sherrill said in a statement, adding that her administration is working with the congressional delegation to gather facts. Baraka stated that the death is a "heartbreaking reminder of the consequences of a facility that has operated for far too long without adequate oversight, accountability or transparency."
This is not the first death at the facility in recent months. Jean Wilson Brutus, 41, died on Dec. 12, 2025, after experiencing a medical emergency less than 24 hours after his arrival at Delaney Hall. The facility has faced accusations from state and local inspectors of obstructing health and safety inspections. Protests and detainee hunger strikes over issues including food quality, overcrowding, and medical care have also occurred at the detention center.