Lawmakers are asking the Department of Homeland Security to improve training in response to the 2013 death of a Mexican teenager who drank liquid methamphetamine at the alleged request of customs officers at the San Ysidro Port of Entry near San Diego.
"What happened to Cruz Velazquez was absolutely horrible, and we must guarantee that something like this never happens again," Rep. Juan Vargas, D-Calif., said in an email Monday to KPBS. "I am requesting an immediate response from the Department of Homeland Security to ensure that proper training is put in place for Customs and Border Protection agents."
Vargas' statement is the latest in a string of similar calls for action from members of Congress after video showing the events leading up to the death of Cruz Velazquez Acevedo aired for the first time on ABC News.
In the video, two customs officers appear to be gesturing at Velazquez to drink from the bottles of liquid methamphetamine and laughing when he does. According to court records, the officers asked the boy to drink the liquid to prove it was not meth. The boy claimed the bottles contained apple juice, but the officers were suspicious because he seemed nervous. Velazquez, who was 16 years old, died later that day from the overdose.
Gene Iredale, the attorney for the boy's family, said the customs officers broke protocol because they should have simply tested the liquid with kits they have on hand.