Royer Perez-Jimenez, a 19-year-old Mexican national, died of a “presumed suicide” on March 16 at the Glades County Detention Center in Moore Haven, Florida.
According to reporting by Chiapas360, Royer Perez-Jimenez was from San Juan Chamula, an autonomous Tzotzil Maya community in Chiapas, Mexico. L.A. TACO confirmed with Odilia Romero of Cielo that Perez-Jimenez is, in fact, Mayan Tzotzil. He is a native of the Rancho Narvaez community. In Chiapas360’s reporting, they state that the family is requesting support to repatriate the body of Perez-Jimenez.
According to the ICE press release, Perez-Jimenez was found “unconscious and unresponsive” at approximately 2:34 a.m. that day by a detention officer, who called medical personnel. After medical personnel determined Perez-Jimenez had no pulse, they requested EMS, who arrived at roughly 2:42 a.m. The young man was declared deceased by 2:51 a.m. The cause of death is still under investigation.
According to Union-Bulletin, the Glades County Detention Facility has faced allegations of medical neglect in recent years. Congressional representatives called for the closure of the facility in a 2022 letter to the Department of Homeland Security. In response, the Biden Administration limited usage of the facility and raised concerns about its lack of medical care.
In 2025, the Trump administration announced that the facility would again hold detainees.