DeSantis addresses Florida reportedly speaking with feds about closing ‘Alligator Alcatraz'
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis spoke out Thursday following a new report that said state officials are speaking with the Trump administration about shutting down the immigrant detention center in the Everglades known as “Alligator Alcatraz.”
The shutdown talks are preliminary, The New York Times reported Thursday, citing an anonymous federal official, a former Immigration and Customs Enforcement official, and a person close to the administration of Gov. Ron DeSantis.
The report said officials at the Department of Homeland Security have concluded that it is too expensive to keep operating the facility.
'ALLIGATOR ALCATRAZ' LATEST
At a news conference Thursday afternoon, DeSantis was asked about the potential closure of the facility, which was built last summer at a remote airstrip by DeSantis’ administration to support President Trump’s immigration policies.
“I said on day one it was going to be temporary, we didn’t know how long because we didn’t know what funding was going to be passed, how the DHS would stand up all this stuff, but it is going to be temporary, at some point we will of course break it down, that was always the goal, and then that airport will just go back to its normal use,” DeSantis said.
The governor said the facility was created to assist DHS with bed space for undocumented immigrants that would otherwise be released from detention.
“If they’re able to handle that so that you’re not releasing thousands of people, if they can handle that, then yeah, that would be great for us to break that facility down,” DeSantis said. “We’ll see kind of what the vision is going forward about whether they want to pivot because I know they do have more detention space now, and not just in Florida but around the country, fine, we’re happy to roll however makes sense.”
DeSantis said “Alligator Alcatraz” is responsible for almost 22,000 undocumented immigrants being processed and deported.
“It was always designed to be a temporary facility, it has made a major impact, and if we shut the lights out on it tomorrow we will be able to say it served it’s purpose because it was responsible for helping with almost 22,000 illegal aliens and that ultimately is what it’s all about,” he said.
DeSantis added that the federal government will soon be reimbursing the state for the facility.
“We’re getting it and you will see that very shortly,” he said.
The Department of Homeland Security said that the agency is not pressuring the state to cease operations at Alligator Alcatraz and that it continuously evaluates detention needs and requirements to ensure they meet the latest operational requirements.
“Any reports that DHS is pressuring the state to cease operations at Alligator Alcatraz are false.
Florida continues to be a valuable partner in advancing President Trump’s immigration agenda, and DHS appreciates their support. DHS continuously evaluates detention needs and requirements to ensure they meet the latest operational requirements. Regarding reimbursement, DHS reviews reimbursement requests for grant funding to ensure costs are allowable and validated expenses that are eligible for reimbursement prior to releasing funding,” the statement said.
NBC6 has reached out to the Florida Division of Emergency Management and was waiting to hear back.
Multiple detainees have come forward alleging poor conditions in the facility, and multiple lawsuits have been filed seeking to close it, but an appeals court last month decided it would remain open.
“Today’s news that Alligator Alcatraz may finally be shut down is long overdue,” Miami-Dade Mayor Daniella Levine Cava said in a post on X. “For months, thousands have been detained there in inhumane conditions without meaningful due process–while wasting millions of taxpayer dollars. It is time for dignity & accountability to be restored.”
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