Illegal migrants could soon be held in a massive new immigration detention centre in Florida, which has been dubbed the “Alligator Alcatraz.”
The 39-square-mile plot of land — which is surrounded by alligators and pythons — was offered to the Trump administration by Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier.
The “virtually abandoned airport facility” would have the capacity to “house as many as 1,000 criminal aliens,” Uthmeier said in a video sharing his offer with the White House.
He added that it could be up and running within as little as 30 to 60 days.
“Florida’s been leading on immigration enforcement, supporting the Trump administration and ICE’s efforts to detain and deport criminal aliens,” the AG said.
“The government tasked state leaders to identify places for new temporary detention facilities.”
“I think this is the best one. As I call it, alligator Alcatraz,” he added.
The massive plot of land offers an “efficient, low-cost opportunity to build a temporary detention facility because you don’t need to invest that much in the perimeter,” which has alligators and pythons “waiting” for anyone who escapes, said Uthmeier.
“Alligator alcatraz, we’re ready to go,” he declared.
ICE migrant detention centers are currently filled to the brim, holding roughly 53,000 illegal migrants under the Trump administration’s latest push, which is beyond what is funded by Congress.
As a result, the agency is burning through its budget at a breakneck pace — with ICE already $1 billion over budget, Axios reported Monday.
Congress funded roughly 41,500 ICE detention beds at a cost of roughly $3.4 billion in fiscal year 2024, according to the American Immigration Lawyers Association.
If Republicans’ “Big Beautiful Bill” passes the Senate, ICE will have $45 billion to expand its capacity to detain illegal migrants, according to the Economic Policy Institute.
The White House has also upped ICE’s daily arrest quota from 1,800 to 3,000, which ICE insiders told the Post is shifting the focus away from criminal migrants and tanking agency morale.
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