More than 250 detainees held at the "Alligator Alcatraz" immigration detention center have no criminal charges or convictions in the United States, the Miami Herald and Tampa Bay Times reported Sunday.
The report runs contrary to what President Donald Trump said July 1 when he visited the detention center in the Everglades with administration officials and Gov. Ron DeSantis.
"Very soon, this facility will house some of the most menacing migrants, some of the most vicious people on the planet," Trump said.
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The report came out a day after state and federal lawmakers toured the facility. Democrats described it as crowded, unsanitary and bug-infested. Republicans said it was well-run, clean and safe, and the air conditioning worked well.
The Herald/Times, citing federal records, reported that only one-third of detainees listed have criminal convictions, ranging from attempted murder to traffic violations.
Tricia McLauglin, Department of Homeland Security assistant secretary, dismissed the report in a statement.
"Many of the individuals that are counted as 'noncriminals' are actually terrorists, human rights abusers, gangsters and more; they just don't have a rap sheet in the U.S. Further, every single one of these individuals committed a crime when they came into this country illegally. It is not an accurate description to say they are 'noncriminals,' " McLaughlin said.
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Nationwide, the latest data from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement shows the vast majority of detainees had no criminal convictions. Federal records reveal that as of June 29 ICE detained 57,861 people and that 41,495 (71.7% ) had no criminal convictions. That includes 14,318 people with pending criminal charges and 27,177 who are subject to immigration enforcement, but have no known criminal convictions or pending criminal charges.
Each detainee is assigned a threat level by ICE on a scale of 1 to 3, with one being the highest. Those without a criminal record are classified as having "no ICE threat level." As of June 23, the latest data available, 84% of people detained at 201 facilities nationwide were not given a threat level. Another 7% had been graded as a Level 1 threat, 4% were Level 2 and 5% were Level 3.
Information from the Associated Press was used in this report.
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