Guatemalan woman dies in Santa Teresa desert

SANTA TERESA, New Mexico (KVIA) -- CBP officials are announcing the death of a Guatemalan woman found unconscious in the Santa Teresa desert this August.

Officials say that during a traffic stop the evening of August 20, 2023, Border Patrol Tactical Unit agents learned from migrants inside the stopped car that their group had abandoned the Guatemalan woman in the desert when she couldn't keep up.

Agents went to the desert area described by the migrants and found the woman lying on the ground unconscious. Vomit was obstructing her breathing and her heartbeat was erratic, according to officials. The agents arranged for an ambulance to meet them on Strauss Road in Santa Teresa. The ambulance took the woman to an El Paso hospital, where she later died several days later.

Officials have not yet released the results of the autopsy. CBP officials explain only that the woman was severely dehydrated when agents found her.