Hermilo Salcedo, 57, of Las Cruces, New Mexico has died after being hospitalized for choking on a bag of cocaine he attempted to swallow to keep away from law enforcement.
Salcedo was being arrested on warrant last Thursday on charges of drug trafficking at the local county detention center, when officers found a bag of cocaine in the suspect’s rectum. Officers, the Las Cruces Sun News, are reporting asked Salcedo to removed the, as of then, unidentified item.
Salcedo then proceeded to swallow what was then identified as a bag of cocaine. He immediately began choking and the detention center’s medical staff performed CPR. Authorities are reporting that officers did try to dislodge the bag from Salcedo’s windpipe.
Salcedo was taken to Las Cruces’ Memorial Medical Center where he remained in critical condition, he died on Sunday. The incident is under investigation which is standard protocol for an incident like this.
Hermillo is survived by his wife of 38 years, Nancy and two adult children.
