MIAMI COUNTY — Federal immigration officials say that a man in custody at the Miami Correctional Facility died on Monday.
According to the press release, staff found Lorth Sim, a 59-year-old man from Cambodia, unresponsive in his cell and pronounced him deceased at 7:10 a.m.
Sim's cause of death is under investigation.
ICE says Sims entered the United States as a refugee in 1983 and became a lawful permanent resident in 1986.
The agency says he was arrested for disorderly conduct in 1989, indecent exposure in 1996 and larceny in 2005.
In 2006, a judge ordered Sim's removal to Cambodia.
On December 30, 2025, ICE said officers encountered Sim at the ICE office lobby in Boston, and he was placed under arrest. He was transferred to ICE Chicago custody on January 5, 2026.
In the wake of Sim's death, Indiana lawmakers are urging full transparency and a thorough investigation.
"Lorth Sim's family deserves answers, and so do the American people. ICE has shown they have a disregard for human life. We need to know exactly what caused Lorth's death," U.S. Rep. André Carson wrote on social media. "I'm demanding DHS give us answers, now."
“I have spoken to officials at the Department of Correction and urged them to conduct a thorough investigation of the death of this detainee. We need to ensure that our procedures and medical contractors are up to the task of appropriately caring for people in ICE custody.
“Public trust in ICE is near zero. Since the state of Indiana has decided to allow ICE to use our facilities, it is incumbent on us to ensure that the conditions in that facility are up to standard. Over the last few months, I have visited Miami Correctional Facility three times to see for myself that detainees are receiving proper treatment. I will continue to monitor this situation until we have a full public report of what happened to this detainee and receive proper assurance there was no systemic failure that could cost another person their life.”
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