Gustavo Rivero Napoles dies two days after release from immigration custody
The 65-year-old Cuban man with terminal liver cancer had spent about five months detained; his family questions his medical care and the timing of his release.
Gustavo Rivero Napoles, a 65-year-old Cuban who lived for decades in Hialeah, died Sunday, October 25, in a California hospital. He had terminal liver cancer and spent about five months in immigration custody. ICE formalized his release on October 23, two days before his death.
The day his administrative release took effect, Rivero Napoles was transferred to intensive care. Relatives say he was already unconscious when he left custody. The proximity of the events forms part of the circumstances leading the family to question the decision to release him in that condition.
The family also questioned the medical care he received while detained. Their concerns address both the care provided and the timing of release when, they say, his condition was already critical. He died two days later in the California hospital.
Rivero Napoles had spent much of his life in Hialeah before nearly five months in immigration custody. His terminal cancer and transfer to intensive care on release day form part of the sequence cited by relatives in questioning medical attention and the administrative decision.
Angelina Rivero, his niece, summarized the family's pain by saying he died after being treated like a dog. The statement accompanies relatives' criticism of his medical care and the formal release when, according to them, he was already unconscious.
The dates define his final days: release on October 23, intensive-care admission that day and death on October 25. The family maintains its questions about medical treatment and the conditions of his release.