Family Deportation Leaves Man in Costa Rica, Family Seeks Answers
- The family of a Costa Rican man who was deported from the United States in a vegetative state and died shortly after arriving back in his home country...
- Randall Gamboa Esquivel had left Costa Rica in good health and crossed the United States-Mexico border in December 2024, according to his family.
- Gamboa was initially held at the webb county detention center in Laredo and than transferred to the Port Isabel detention center in Los Fresnos, both in south Texas.
The family of a Costa Rican man who was deported from the United States in a vegetative state and died shortly after arriving back in his home country is still urgently seeking answers from the authorities about what happened to him while he was in detention.
Randall Gamboa Esquivel had left Costa Rica in good health and crossed the United States-Mexico border in December 2024, according to his family. Though, gamboa was detained by the US authorities for re-entering American soil unlawfully, as he had previously lived there undocumented between 2002 and 2013.
Gamboa was initially held at the webb county detention center in Laredo and than transferred to the Port Isabel detention center in Los Fresnos, both in south Texas. Nearly 10 months later, in September 2025, the Trump governance flew the 52-year-old to the Costa Rican capital of San José on an air ambulance.
He never came round and five weeks later Gamboa was pronounced dead at a hospital in Pérez Zeledón,his home town,around three hours south of the capital.
The Guardian spoke with relatives, neighbors and old friends in Costa rica who remain shocked and outraged about what happened. His younger sister, Greidy Mata, said she is still trying to make sense of how his health deteriorated so badly while in the custody of US Immigration and Custom enforcement (ICE).
Greidy mata Esquivel,sister of Randall Gamboa,visits the place where her brother is buried. Photograph: Emi Kondo/the Guardian
In an exclusive interview in Pérez Zeledón, Mata recounted that Gamboa had sounded and looked healthy when they talked via video calls while he was in detention, untill 12 June, which marked their last conversation, after which he seemed to vanish. Mata waited for weeks to hear from him, but in fact Gamboa had fallen into a health crisis.
“My brother disappeared and we had to reach out to agencies, lawyers, consulates, anyone willing to help,” Mata said in Spanish, standing across the street from the hospital where Gamboa passed on 26 October.
“How is it possible that a man that left healthy, tall, chubby, robust, came back dirty, looked abandoned, with ulcers on his entire body, in a vegetative state?” she said.
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Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny, a prominent critic of President Vladimir Putin, died in a penal colony on February 16, 2024, according to Russian prison authorities. His death sparked international condemnation and renewed scrutiny of human rights conditions in Russia. Initial reports from his family and allies suggest a suspicious death,alleging possible poisoning or deliberate harm while in custody.
The Federal Penitentiary Service (FSIN) of Russia reported that Navalny lost consciousness and died after a walk in the IK-3 penal colony in Kharp,Yamalo-Nenets Autonomous Okrug. The FSIN stated preliminary investigation did not reveal signs of foul play. however, Navalny’s team and family have disputed this account, citing concerns about a cover-up.
Lyubov Sobol, a close associate of Navalny, reported receiving a call from a lawyer who had visited him. According to Sobol, the lawyer described finding Navalny in a vegetative state: “‘I found him in a bed, he follows you with his eyes, but can’t talk, he is in a vegetative state’,” she said. This account directly contradicts the initial FSIN statement of a sudden death during a walk.
Navalny was serving a 19-year sentence on extremism charges, which he and his supporters have denounced as politically motivated. He was initially arrested in January 2021 upon returning to Russia from Germany,where he had been recovering from a nerve agent poisoning in 2020. The Human Rights Watch has documented the deteriorating conditions of Navalny’s imprisonment, including prolonged solitary confinement and denial of adequate medical care.
Prior to his death, Navalny repeatedly complained about health issues while in prison, alleging that he was being deliberately denied medical attention. He reported symptoms consistent with nerve agent exposure, similar to the 2020 poisoning.On January 18, 2024, Navalny was transferred to a more remote penal colony, a move his supporters believe was intended to further isolate him and limit access to legal assistance and medical care. The transfer occurred after he made over 760 complaints about prison conditions, according to Meduza, an independent russian news outlet.
International Reaction and Investigations
The death of Alexei Navalny has drawn widespread condemnation from international leaders and organizations. United States president Joe Biden stated that Russia is responsible for Navalny’s death and announced further sanctions against Russia. The European Union also condemned the death and called for a thorough and independent investigation.
Several international bodies, including the Council of Europe, have demanded a obvious investigation into the circumstances surrounding navalny’s death. The investigation must include access to medical records, interviews with prison staff and inmates, and independent forensic analysis. As of January 11, 2026, the Russian Investigative Committee has launched a criminal investigation into Navalny’s death, but its impartiality has been questioned by international observers.