Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Officials said Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) centers are at capacity after the Trump administration arrested over 32,000 migrants during its first 50 days in office.
In a call with journalists, officials detailed that centers across the country currently hold some 47,600 people. Over 14,000 are convicted criminals and a little under 10,000 have pending criminal charges.
"We hope detention and expulsion figures will increase as we give leeway to an agency that has had its hands tied for four years," ICE acting director Todd Lyons said. "The law enforcement operations are not only removing criminals from American communities but also deterring people from coming into our country illegally," he added.
The administration will seek fresh funds from Congress to expand capacity, they added. ICE announced earlier this month it would reopen an immigration detention facility in Newark this spring. The announcement came after the agency reached an agreement with a private global lender for $1 billion.
ICE will use the Delaney Hall facility in Newark, which holds 1,000-beds, for federal immigration processing. Delaney Hall had previously operated as a detention center until 2017. Its location— a short drive from Manhattan and close to Newark Liberty International Airport— will dramatically increase the amount of detention space available for ICE in the New York area.
The Trump administration had touted in its first weeks in office a plan to take detained migrants to Guantanamo Bay, claiming that facilities there could be used to hold up to 30,000 people. However, that initiative has so far failed to materialize, and a new report from the New York Times shows that actual figures are far from that goal.
The outlet detailed that about 40 migrants were held at the facility this past weekend, and that current capacity allows for the detention of 225 people at a time, less than 1% of the figure given by the Trump administration. Some of those held there were returned to the U.S. a few days after without explanation.
The figures were given at a visit to the base by members of the House Armed Services Committee. A small dormitory near the base's airport can accommodate 50 people, while the remainder can be held at Camp 6, a Pentagon prison facility that previously housed detainees suspected of terrorism. Construction of a larger tent city, initially intended to expand capacity, was halted after 195 tents were installed. They remain empty.
The tents do not meet Homeland Security health and safety requirements due to a lack of air conditioning and the presence of mold. Security concerns have also delayed their use. A contractor has been hired to make necessary upgrades, but no work has begun, the outlet detailed.
The legal, logistical, and financial obstacles posed by the facility have raised serious doubts inside the Government about its viability. According to a special report by NBC News, officials within the administration increasingly recognize that the proposal is proving impractical with costs being the primary reason cited.
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