Lawmakers seek answers after detainee dies at Otay Mesa Detention Center

Members of San Diego's congressional delegation have called on the Department of Homeland Security for answers following the death of a detainee at the Otay Mesa Detention Center. Guillermo Pascual Verganza, a 42-year-old immigrant from Guatemala, was found unconscious and unresponsive in his single-occupant cell on October 24, according to the San Diego County Medical Examiner’s Office.

Efforts by detention staff and paramedics to revive Pascual were unsuccessful, and he was pronounced dead shortly before 12:30 p.m. at the facility near the border, the county agency reported.

San Diego Democratic Representatives Juan Vargas, Scott Peters, Sara Jacobs, and Mike Levin, along with California Senators Alex Padilla and Adam Schiff, expressed “grave concern” about the detainee’s death. They jointly sent a letter to the Trump administration demanding a thorough inquiry and regular updates on the investigation’s progress.

The lawmakers emphasized the importance of complete and accurate information to assess whether current policies and safeguards adequately protect individuals in federal custody. Their call for investigation is heightened by prior concerns about delayed medical care and substandard detention conditions at the facility.