Texas Contractor Building Migrant Detention Camp Was Previously Charged in Undocumented Migrant Hiring Scheme: Report

A Texas contractor helping build a massive new migrant detention facility near Fort Bliss previously co-owned a company that pleaded guilty to hiring undocumented workers, raising new questions about how federal contracts are awarded.

The Department of Defense announced earlier this month that it plans to construct what could become the largest immigration detention site in the U.S., with space for up to 5,000 people, according to ProPublica. The contract, valued at over $1.2 billion, includes work by Disaster Management Group, a firm led by Republican donor Nathan Albers. Albers formerly held a leadership role at TentLogix, a company that admitted in 2019 to knowingly hiring undocumented workers and attempting to hide them from federal authorities.

Although Albers was not charged personally, court records show he signed off on TentLogix's guilty plea. The firm was fined more than $3 million and filed for bankruptcy the following year. Since then, Albers has grown Disaster Management into a major player in temporary government construction contracts, winning over $500 million in recent years for projects including refugee housing. The company has also been penalized for labor violations, paying nearly $16 million in back wages following a Department of Labor investigation in 2023.

The Fort Bliss project will be led by Virginia-based Acquisition Logistics, with Disaster Management and Amentum named as subcontractors. Neither the White House nor federal agencies have addressed concerns over Albers' past ties to immigration violations. A spokesperson for Disaster Management claimed Albers was cleared during the TentLogix investigation and had only been a minority, non-operating partner.

Still, watchdogs say the system allows contractors to avoid deeper scrutiny. "I don't even think this would appear on the radar of a contracting officer," said Scott Amey, general counsel for the Project On Government Oversight.

ICE canceled a similar $3.8 billion facility contract earlier this year without explanation. The Fort Bliss site now appears to replace that effort as a key part of a broader strategy to ramp up deportations.