A teenaged migrant Honduran boy who crossed into the United States without his family has died in US custody, US and Honduran officials said Friday.
Honduran Foreign Minister Enrique Reina identified the boy as 17-year-old Eduardo Maradiaga Espinoza, and said that he died in a refugee shelter in Safety Harbor, Florida.
The US Department of Health and Human Services, whose Office of Refugee Resettlement oversees the care and housing of unaccompanied migrant children, confirmed a death but gave no details.
The department "is deeply saddened by this tragic loss and our heart goes out to the family, with whom we are in touch," it said in a statement.
HHS said an investigation was underway into the death.
CNN reported that HHS had informed Congress in a letter that the teen had been placed in the shelter on May 5 and died on Wednesday shortly after being taken from the shelter to a local hospital.
The death came in a week that thousands of migrants made last-ditch attempts to enter the United States before a major change in immigration rules went into effect, including tough new measures for people crossing the border illegally.
White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre called the death "devastating news."
"Our hearts go out to the family members," she said, adding that there is an ongoing medical investigation into what happened.
Reina acknowledged that the teen was one of the more than 10,000 Hondurans who have tried to enter the United States each month over the past year.
"This terrible incident highlights the importance of working together on bilateral migration issues and the situation of unaccompanied minors, to find solutions," he wrote.
Published 13 May 2023, 02:55 IST