Tuan Van Bui, 55, a Vietnamese immigrant, died last week while detained at the Miami Correctional Facility in Indiana. This information comes from a notification sent by US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to members of Congress, as reported by ABC News on 8/4.

Bui's death marks the 46th fatality among individuals held in federal immigration custody. He is the third Vietnamese national to die in an ICE detention facility, following two previous cases in 4/2025 and 7/2025 in Texas.

In its notification, ICE stated that officers found Bui unconscious on 1/4. They initiated first aid, and emergency medical personnel performed advanced resuscitation efforts, but Bui did not survive. The cause of death remains unclear.

Miami Correctional Facility, Indiana. Photo: Indiana State Government

Bui entered the United States in 1990 under the Amerasian visa program. According to the ICE notification, he never obtained US citizenship nor applied for naturalization.

ICE reported that an immigration court issued a deportation order against Bui in 2005. He had been arrested more than 10 times on charges including: robbery, theft, assault, reckless endangerment, possession of a controlled substance with intent to distribute or manufacture, carrying a firearm, resisting arrest, and driving under the influence.

Court records show that Bui filed a petition in 2/2026 challenging the legality of his ICE detention. A federal judge responded to this petition one day after Bui's death, requesting clarification from the government by 6/4. Federal officials submitted a report to the court earlier this week, but its contents have not been made public.

Based on ICE data and the number of deaths in detention facilities reported by the agency to Congress, the past 14 months represent the period with the highest number of deaths in federal detention facilities in recent years, with the exception of 2020, when Covid-19 was widespread.

Duc Trung (According to ABC News, FOX News, Indianapolis Star)