DHS Approves Construction Of „Alligator Alcatraz” For Illegal Aliens

Florida officials are building a massive detention facility for illegal aliens, dubbed „Alligator Alcatraz” for its swampy location teeming with deadly predators.

The proposed facility’s site is the Dade-Collier Training and Transition Airport, tucked along the eastern edge of Big Cypress National Preserve, about 55 miles west of Miami. Florida had big plans for it back in the day, aiming to transform it into the „Everglades Jetport,” a massive airport poised to dwarf all others. But eco-activists and environmental worries slammed the brakes on that dream in the 1970s, leaving the project grounded.

Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier (R) announced plans for the project last week, expressing support for President Donald Trump’s immigration policies. „I think this is the best one, as I call it: Alligator Alcatraz,” Uthmeier quipped, nodding to the infamous San Francisco Bay prison island, Alcatraz.

„This 30-square mile area is completely surrounded by the Everglades. It presents an efficient, low-cost opportunity to build a temporary detention facility because you don’t need to invest that much in the perimeter,” the top Florida official said. „If people get out, there’s not much waiting for them other than alligators and pythons.”

Alligator Alcatraz: the one-stop shop to carry out President Trump’s mass deportation agenda. pic.twitter.com/96um2IXE7U

— Attorney General James Uthmeier (@AGJamesUthmeier) June 19, 2025

Uthmeier said the area is „virtually abandoned” and was given approval within a week. In a Monday interview with conservative podcaster Benny Johnson, the Florida attorney general said the detention center is on track to house 5,000 beds by early July.

This morning, I joined @bennyjohnson and announced that Alligator Alcatraz will be moving forward!

In Florida, the swamp means something different. pic.twitter.com/KGrHZS2DjT

— Attorney General James Uthmeier (@AGJamesUthmeier) June 23, 2025

Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said Monday that the federal government will pour money into plan, tapping FEMA’s Shelter and Services Program to foot the bill.

“Under President Trump’s leadership, we are working at turbo speed on cost-effective and innovative ways to deliver on the American people’s mandate for mass deportations of criminal illegal aliens. We will expand facilities and bed space in just days, thanks to our partnership with Florida,” Noem said in a statement.

A DHS official told the Miami Herald that the facility will cost $450 million annually.