Three Immigrants Die in Separate ICE-Related Incidents Across Maine, Georgia and Florida
Within 24 hours in July 2024, three men died during encounters with U.S. immigration officials in three states, prompting investigations and renewed scrutiny of ICE practices.
Three men died in separate incidents linked to U.S. immigration enforcement within a 24-hour period in July 2024. In Biddeford, Maine, 25-year-old Colombian resident Joan Sebastián Durán Guerrero was shot by an ICE officer after a vehicle pursuit, according to a DHS statement that the suspect “attempted to flee.”
In Ocilla, Georgia, 45-year-old Venezuelan citizen Jesús Manuel Arenas-Silva died on a transport bus after becoming unconscious; a preliminary ICE report said he had multiple chronic health conditions and was not carrying all prescribed medication at the time of his arrest.
In St. Augustine, Florida, 28-year-old Mexican national Juan Jairo Coronilla Durán was struck by a tractor-trailer while fleeing federal immigration agents near a highway, according to the Florida Highway Patrol.
The deaths occurred as the Department of Homeland Security shifted from high-visibility raids to lower-profile operations and increased cooperation with local law-enforcement agencies. Data cited by an immigration policy expert shows at least 31 deaths in 2026 related to immigration enforcement, including four shootings and 25 deaths in detention.
Federal officials have declined to comment on the specifics of the investigations, referring inquiries to the Maine attorney general’s office, the DHS inspector general, the Georgia Bureau of Investigation and the Florida Highway Patrol. Families of the deceased have called for greater accountability and improvements to ICE hiring and medical-care procedures.