Autopsy Report: Guatemalan girl in Border Patrol custody died of Sepsis infection

Jakelin Caal Maquin , the Guatemalan girl who died less than 48 hours after Border Patrol agents detained her and other migrants at a remote New Mexico border crossing, died of a bacterial infection, an autopsy report obtained by ABC-7 states.

The autopsy report states traces of streptococcus sepsis bacteria were found in Jakelin’s lungs, adrenal gland, liver, and spleen.

” The clinical course and autopsy finding are those of a rapidly and progressive infection, with prompt systemic bacterial spread, ” the report states.

The 7-year-old girl traveled with her father more than 2,000 miles from her indigenous community in northern Guatemala to the remote New Mexico desert near Antelope Wells, where she was apprehended with a group of 163 migrants.

The girl’s father, Nery Gilberto Caal Cuz , signed an English-language form in which he confirmed his daughter was in good health. In the wake of the girl’s death, immigration attorneys representing the father said their client did not understand what he was signing.

The girl’s death drew worldwide attention to the plight of Central American immigrants requesting asylum in the U.S.

Below is a timeline, compiled by CNN, of the last hours before Jakelin’s death on December 8, as told by the Department of Homeland Security:

December 6
9:15 p.m.

Jakelin and her father, Nery Gilberto Caal , 29, were among a group of 163 migrants detained by Border Patrol agents about a half-mile west of the Antelope Wells port of entry in New Mexico. They were interviewed by agents to determine if they needed medical care. Her father signed a form saying he and Jakelin were healthy.

10 p.m.

A bus left a Border Patrol station in Lordsburg , New Mexico, to pick up the group of migrants. The station is about 90 minutes away.

December 7
12:18 a.m.

The bus arrived at the Antelope Wells port of entry to take 50 unaccompanied children to the Lordsburgh station.

Around 5 a.m.

Once the bus returned, some 50 migrants, including Jakelin and her father, were loaded onto it. With the bus preparing to leave, Jakelin’s father told agents his daughter was sick and vomiting. Border agents called the Lordsburg station and requested that an emergency medical technician be ready when the bus arrived.

Just before 6:30 a.m.

When the bus arrived at the Border Patrol station, Jakelin’s father said his daughter was not breathing. Emergency medical technicians treated her and requested an ambulance. Her temperature was more than 105 degrees, and medics had to revive her twice.

6:40 a.m.

An ambulance arrived, and a helicopter was called to take the child to a hospital in El Paso, Texas, more than four hours away by vehicle.

7:30 a.m.

A helicopter arrived at the Border Patrol station.

7:48 a.m.

The helicopter left the station with Jakelin . Her father stayed in Lordsburg , and agents drove him to the hospital in El Paso.

8:51 a.m.

Jakelin arrived at the Providence Children’s Hospital in El Paso. She was treated in the emergency room and later transferred to the pediatric intensive care unit.

11 a.m.

Border Patrol officials in Lordsburg were notified that Jakelin was revived again after going into cardiac arrest, US Customs and Border Protection said. A CT scan revealed she was suffering brain swelling. She was breathing by machine and was diagnosed with liver failure.

December 8
12:35 a.m.

Jakelin died with her father by her side. An initial report by the hospital said she passed away due to sepsis shock. Authorities notified the Guatemalan Consulate about Jakelin’s death.