'Alligator Alcatraz' detainees were held in small metal cages, federal report says

MIAMI (AP) — Detainees at a now-closed immigrant detention center in the Florida Everglades — known as “Alligator Alcatraz” — were held for up to two hours in small metal enclosures used as “calming areas,” a practice that “does not meet standards for humane treatment,” according to a new report by the Department of Homeland Security’s Inspector General released on Monday.

Between July 17, 2025, and Jan. 18, 2026, the report said, 79 detainees were confined in small metal enclosures of about 18 square feet of floor space each, for periods ranging from several minutes to nearly two hours. Photographs included in the report show a cage that looks only slightly larger than a telephone booth sitting on what is either grass or turf and surrounded by chain-link fencing topped with concertina wire.

“The use of such restrictive spaces is highly unconventional,” the report stated.

It noted that facility staff described the metal enclosures as “‘calming areas’ for detainees to de-escalate and have time alone.” It didn’t specify where the boxes were located or exactly the instances in which they were used but documents provided by staff at the facility said one detainee spent 26 minutes in one for failing to “comply with a lawful order.” The report said that in at least one instance, the metal enclosure may have been used as a disciplinary tool.

A policy posted on the enclosures said the purpose of the holding cell space was to provide a “safe and secure place in general population for detainees to reflect on their behavior choices, manage their emotions, reduce stress, and practice self-directed behavior,” according to the document attached to the report.

The revelation was part of a broader report from the Inspector General that detailed other conditions it described as inhumane.

The detention center was opened July 3, 2025, and closed on June 25. It quickly drew attention from immigration advocates who criticized the conditions. Detainees lacked adequate living space, access to showers, legal information and clean water, the report said, calling it a violation of federal and state detention standards.

The report was prepared following an unannounced visit to the South Florida Detention Facility on Jan. 21. It marks the first time a government agency has confirmed the existence of such conditions at the facility. Advocates, lawyers, families and human rights organizations such as Amnesty International had previously reported and harshly criticized the treatment of detainees.

In June, citing concerns related to hurricane season, DHS said all detainees at the Florida state-run center located at an isolated airstrip in the Everglades were transferred to other facilities.

In the report , the Office of the Inspector General said the immigrant detention center did not provide detainees with sufficient living space, “creating cramped conditions” for inmates who spent most of their time in metal housing units, “which may harm” their physical and mental health, the report said.

Detainees had less than half the space required, according to the report. They spent the bulk of their time housed on a campus with eight windowless buildings, not leaving except for meals three times a day, an hour of recreation time three times a week, showers three times a week, and for medical reasons.

The report noted that standards require at least 75 square feet of floor space per detainee in dormitory housing units. Instead, it said, the housing units at the South Florida Detention Facility were 28 square feet for each detainee, “well below the required minimum.”

The Office of the Inspector General says that DHS did not address its recommendations. DHS contended that it did not have authority over the facility's day-to-day operations, the report said.

In a statement sent to the AP, DHS said that the facility “was consistent” with the same federal detention standards applied by previous administrations, including those of Presidents Joe Biden and Barack Obama. DHS did not address the use of “calming areas.”

DHS said that all detainee facilities are clean, and any allegations of inhumane conditions are false.

Alex Lanfranconi, communications director for Gov. Ron DeSantis, said that Florida “adheres to all federal standards for criminal confinement.”

The report said that facilities housing U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement detainees must comply with the federal detention standards, but the staff at “Alligator Alcatraz” could not clearly identify the standards they used for holding detainees.

The 33-page report notes that “Alligator Alcatraz” did not comply with standards related to environmental health and safety, medical care, food, personal hygiene and recreation, among other things.

The Office of the Inspector General found that only some detainees had access to recreation for five hours a week, and others did not have access to a law library or legal materials, which could have prevented them from contacting legal representation, a claim that former detainees raised during a court hearing in January, when they stated that their First Amendment rights were violated.

Detainees told the inspectors that they did not have access to clean drinking water and could not clean their cups, the report said. They also told inspectors they showered only three times a week, which prevented them from maintaining good personal hygiene, according to the report.