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Second detainee tests positive for coronavirus at Port Isabel Detention Center

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A second detainee at Port Isabel Detention Center is reported to be positive for the coronavirus. 

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement confirmed a 19-year-old Haitian man tested positive. He is being held at the Port Isabel Detention Center in Los Fresnos, Texas. 

He is the second person to have the virus while in federal detention. 

The first incident was reported earlier this month. Court records identify him as Carlos Cesar Vela-Hernandez, a Mexican national who was caught entering the country illegally near Escobares on May 8.  

In an interview over the phone, Vela-Hernandez told CHANNEL FIVE NEWS he started feeling sick while he was in Border Patrol custody at a station in Rio Grande City.

Two tests administered at the Starr County Memorial Hospital confirmed his results. He was taken to Port Isabel Detention Center the following day. 

On Tuesday, Vela-Hernandez went before a federal judge to face a federal charge for illegally re-entering the country after being previously deported.

As of May 28, the agency website confirms there are a total of 1,392 detainees who tested positive for the virus nationwide. In Texas, there's a combined total of 421 cases. There are 25,911 people in detention as of May 23.

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