ICE closing massive detention center Trump admin eyed as model after migrants die: report
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement appears poised to shutter a troubled $1.2 billion tent detention facility near El Paso, Texas, that opened just eight months ago, according to internal documents reviewed by The Washington Post.
An ICE memo circulating among staff this week indicated the agency is drafting a termination letter for the sprawling Camp East Montana, operated by Acquisition Logistics LLC.
The facility, once touted as a model for rapid detention expansion, has become a cautionary tale of mismanagement and chaos.
"Once seen as the model for a new breed of makeshift tent encampments the Trump administration planned to rapidly build all over the country in its campaign to detain and deport millions of immigrants, Camp East Montana struggled to provide safe and humane housing for thousands of people," the report said.
Three detainees died there in two months, including a Cuban national whose January death was ruled a homicide. Witnesses claim guards choked Campos during a struggle, though Department of Homeland Security officials dispute the account.
ICE's own inspectors found at least 60 federal standard violations in September, citing failures in medical care, legal access, and safety procedures. Detainees housed in enormous football-field-sized tents alleged beatings by guards and denied medical treatment. A measles outbreak recently forced the facility to close to visitors and attorneys.
The facility houses approximately 1,500 detainees, which is half its January peak, in open-top tent pods holding up to 72 people each. Though designed as temporary two-week holding centers, records show many detainees have been confined for months.
Rep. Veronica Escobar called for its closure, arguing the money could fund healthcare and social programs instead of "dehumanizing" immigrants. DHS spokeswoman Lauren Bis insisted "no decisions have been made," though internal memos suggest otherwise. The closure comes as DHS pursues a separate $38 billion warehouse detention expansion plan.
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