A Florida migrant detention center that President Donald Trump branded “Alligator Alcatraz” violated numerous federal detention standards and held migrants in small metal enclosures for hours at a time, according to a new government watchdog report.
The facility opened in July 2025 and shut down 13 months later following widespread reports of serious problems. Florida officials said in May that the center had processed and deported approximately 22,000 detainees during its operation.
The report from the Department of Homeland Security’s Office of Inspector General found that conditions at the now-closed facility created “significant risks” to detainees’ health and safety. Inspectors cited shortcomings involving housing, food services and medical care, among other concerns.
Inspectors paid particular attention to small, fenced metal enclosures where migrants were held for periods ranging from several minutes to about two hours, according to the report.
The practice was unlike anything the OIG team had previously observed at an Immigration and Customs Enforcement facility.
“Use of these small metal enclosures for any reason is unprecedented among ICE facilities inspected by OIG,” the report said. “Confining individuals in small metal enclosures for any reason presents significant risks to detainee health and well-being.”
Staff at “Alligator Alcatraz” described the spaces as “calming areas,” saying detainees could use them to de-escalate and spend time alone. However, inspectors noted that the enclosures were equipped with locking mechanisms.
The OIG also documented at least one case in which an enclosure, measuring about 18 square feet, was used as a disciplinary measure.
President Donald Trump and then-DHS Secretary Kristi Noem speak with the media before the opening of “Alligator Alcatraz” in Ochopee, Florida
An aerial view shows the “Alligator Alcatraz” ICE detention center in Florida
The “Alligator Alcatraz” facility in southern Florida’s Everglades was surrounded by wildlife, including alligators, Florida panthers, pythons and snakes, serving as a natural deterrent
More than 75 migrants were placed in the metal enclosures while the detention center was operating, the watchdog report found.
The average stay in one of the enclosures lasted just over 59 minutes.
The report also described major deficiencies in food service, medical access, hygiene, available living space and recreation at the Florida immigration detention facility, which closed about two months ago.
Among the conditions inspectors highlighted were insect-infested showers, questions about food safety and limited access to clean drinking water.
The report comes as President Donald Trump touted ‘Alligator Alcatraz’ as a potential model for future ICE detention centers during a personal tour of the facility last year.
The detention facility, built on an abandoned airfield in the Everglades, had 5,000 beds, more than 200 security cameras, and roughly 400 security personnel manning the detention center – which was further enclosed by a massive, barbed-wire fence spanning the perimeter.
Trump had marveled during his tour last year at the detention center’s remote location, and joked that migrants being held there should be taught to run in a zig-zag pattern to escape alligators.
‘We’re going to teach them how to run away from an alligator if they escape prison,’ Trump joked.
‘The only way out, really, is deportation,’ Trump added later.
Neither DHS nor ICE immediately responded to Our News Outlet’s request for comment.
