Five 'Alligator Alcatraz' Contractors Are Linked To Corrupt Dealings, Report Reveals

Different contractors hired by the Ron DeSantis administration to build an operate the Florida detention center known as "Alligator Alcatraz," according to a new investigation published by the Miami Herald.

The companies in question are SLSCO, Garner Environmental Services, IRG Global Emergency Management, GardaWorld and CDW. They have ties to allegations of misuse of public funds and business practices, the outlet added.

One of them, SLSCO, allegedly brought armed Mexican nationals without legal immigration status into the United States to provide border wall security under a federal contract.

Another one, CDW, settled allegations of selling products from prohibited countries, including China, to the U.S. government. It paid over $5.5 million in 2013 to settle the whistleblower lawsuit. There was no determination of liability in settling the claims, according to the investigation.

IRG Global Emergency Management, on its end, was accused by former employees of inflating hurricane insurance claims in disaster zones.

All contracts for Alligator Alcatraz granted under an emergency order signed by DeSantis in 2023, allowing state officials to bypass normal regulations in responding to what he called an immigration emergency.

The facility has also been ordered to begin dismantling some of its parts following a ruling preventing it from bringing in new detainees over environmental concerns.

Axios detailed that authorities must begin removing temporary fencing, lighting fixtures and generators within 60 days, according to the ruling by U.S. District Judge Kathleen Williams.

The decision also requires that environmental studies be conducted before any such projects are conducted in the area. The notion stands in contrast with claims by the Trump and DeSantis administrations, which claim that the facility has no impact on the environment.

The Ron DeSantis administration is already appealing the ruling. "So we anticipated this, but I don't think it's going to be insurmountable in the end," the governor told Fox News.

Advocates are also calling for the facility to be shut down as they decry "unlivable" conditions that include mosquitoe-ridden units and lights being on all the time.

"Detention conditions are unlivable," Tessa Petit, executive director of the Florida Immigrant Coalition, said in a press conference in late July, as reported by NBC News.