(WGN) — A longtime Chicago resident who was born in Bulgaria died in custody at an Immigration and Customs facility in Michigan.
The Department of Homeland Security confirmed in a statement via ICE.gov that Nenko Stanev Gantchev, 56, died on Dec. 15 at the North Lake Processing Center in Baldwin, Michigan, saying “his death is suspected to be from natural causes.”
DHS said the official cause of death is still under investigation.
“According to initial reports, Gantchev was discovered unresponsive on the floor of his cell during routine checks,” DHS said. “Facility medical staff responded, began CPR and contacted local emergency medical services. EMS personnel arrived at the facility and continued medical care, and a physician pronounced him deceased.”
Gantchev was born on Oct. 31, 1969, in Bulgaria, DHS said. He was admitted to the U.S. as a J1 exhange visitor on June 16, 1995, and was later granted lawful permanent residence status on May 17, 2005, by U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, according to DHS.
DHS said Gantchev was arrested four times in and around Chicago between 1995 and 2008, with the charges dropped in two of the arrests and the status unknown in the other two.
According to DHS, Gantchev was denied lawful permanent residence status on May 14, 2009, and on Jan. 11, 2023, was ordered by an immigration judge to return to Bulgaria. He was arrested on Sept. 23 during the Trump administration’s immigration enforcement campaign known as “Operation Midway Blitz.”
Gantchev had filed a bond appeal on Oct. 17, which remained pending until his death, according to DHS.
The Chicago Sun-Times reports that U.S. Rep. Delia Ramirez of Illinois’ 3rd District has called for an “immediate, transparent investigation into the circumstances” of Gantchev’s death. That includes reports from other detainees that Gantchev asked for medical assistance but did not receive it in time to save his life, the report says.