Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis confirmed Friday that deportation flights have already begun departing from the state’s newly established immigration detention site, “Alligator Alcatraz,” located deep within the Florida Everglades.
During a press conference, DeSantis revealed that three separate flights operated by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) have taken off from the facility since its July 1 opening.
According to the governor, the first flight included 100 non-citizens, although the specific destinations for the deportees have not been disclosed.
“The flights are going, I think the cadence is going to increase, I think you’re going to see the numbers really go up dramatically,” DeSantis remarked while addressing reporters.
Governor DeSantis Speaks from Alligator Alcatraz https://t.co/AJeIVThH7O
— Ron DeSantis (@GovRonDeSantis) July 25, 2025
Positioning the state as a central player in national immigration enforcement, DeSantis said he wants Florida to serve as a “force multiplier” in the ongoing effort to remove illegal immigrants from the country.
“I don’t want it to be where illegals are just stored there, and then just kind of sitting. I want it to be where illegals are here, there’s an aggressive processing and an aggressive deportation schedule,” he said.
The facility, nicknamed “Alligator Alcatraz” due to its remote location amid wildlife-filled swampland, reportedly houses up to 2,000 non-citizens and features a two-mile runway specifically designed for deportation operations.
The Florida governor said the site is capable of holding even more detainees, up to 3,000 in total, and floated the idea of utilizing Camp Blanding Joint Training Center for future detentions as the need for capacity increases.
“It’s all about realizing the vision, fulfilling the mandate with what people want,” DeSantis said. “Florida’s playing the leading role among the 50 states, and I don’t think there’s anyone who’s even close to doing what we’ve done.”
The state’s efforts appear to be part of a broader federal shift, as Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth recently announced that Indiana’s Camp Atterbury and New Jersey’s Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst will soon be converted into temporary holding centers for undocumented immigrants.
Similar facilities are reportedly being considered in other southern states like Texas, Mississippi, and South Carolina.
Several Democrats have spoken out against what they describe as inhumane conditions at the Everglades facility, accusing DeSantis of staging a political stunt at the expense of vulnerable migrants.
Reports have surfaced suggesting some cells within the detention center may be holding as many as 30 people at a time, raising concerns about overcrowding and insufficient access to legal representation.
Questions have also been raised about whether due process is being upheld for those awaiting deportation. DeSantis dismissed concerns about legal access during his remarks.
“The idea that somehow you need some elaborate process in some of those situations, it’s just not factually true in terms of the law,” he said in response to questions about whether immigration attorneys have been blocked from meeting with detainees.
Meanwhile, a coalition of Democratic lawmakers is pushing for further scrutiny of no-bid contracts associated with the construction and operation of detention centers like Alligator Alcatraz.
On Friday, four prominent House Democrats sent a letter to the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) requesting an investigation into the arrangements between Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and private contractors.
The letter, spearheaded by Reps. Joe Neguse (D-Colo.), Pramila Jayapal (D-Wash.), Jamie Raskin (D-Md.), and Bennie Thompson (D-Miss.), called on SEC Chairman Paul Atkins to examine the “opaque” nature of the deals and how they might impact publicly traded companies involved in the detention industry.
“As the Trump Administration has continued to solicit publicly traded companies to operate detention facilities for immigration enforcement— contracts worth tens of millions of dollars — we, the undersigned, believe that there is an increased need for close oversight by the SEC, in addition to other government accountability measures,” the lawmakers wrote.
“Given the speed and opaque nature of these contracts, there is a heightened need to monitor and oversee the release of material information related to these no-bid contracts,” they added.
The letter cited ongoing national protests concerning the conditions in privately-run immigration facilities, which critics claim have involved civil rights abuses, inadequate healthcare, and misuse of federal funds.
“Given the numerous claims of civil rights violations, inadequate care, and misuse of resources by many of these companies, we believe that it is imperative that we provide every employee with trusted mechanism to provide Congress and the Federal government with pertinent information, including the SEC as it pertains to these contracts, disclosures, and conduct within the company that could violate federal law or SEC regulations,” the letter continued.
They also criticized what they described as a lack of internal oversight at DHS under the Trump administration. “The Trump Administration essentially ended the ability of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to police itself or conduct oversight over its various components,” the lawmakers wrote.
Back in Florida, DeSantis took a moment during a separate press event in Fort Lauderdale to mock what he described as absurd complaints from detainees at the ICE facility in Ochopee.
Standing beside newly-appointed Florida Chief Financial Officer Blaise Ingoglia, DeSantis chuckled at the media’s interest in a particular grievance coming from inside the detention center.
A reporter brought up legal access for detainees, saying, “You know lawyers are not able to see their clients out there. What do you think, being a lawyer yourself and a JAG lawyer?” referring to DeSantis’ experience in the Navy as a Judge Advocate General.
DeSantis suggested that members of the press were echoing complaints from what he labeled “criminal aliens” without properly vetting the information.
He mocked reports that detainees weren’t being properly fed, insisting they receive the same meals as the facility’s staff.
“But, like, in Florida prisons, do you think the prisoners get the same meals as the guards? No. Of course not. It’s different. Everyone’s the same there,” he said.
The governor concluded with a story he appeared to find particularly laughable.
“They were mad that the ham sandwiches weren’t toasted. Excuse me? I mean, give me a break,” DeSantis said, grinning as the crowd around him laughed.
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