In a fearless and practical move to shore up immigration enforcement, Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier has pitched a novel concept to the Trump administration: a 39‑square‑mile detention site in the Everglades, slyly dubbed “Alligator Alcatraz.”
Situated on the abandoned Dade‑Collier airport—as part of the Big Cypress Wildlife Management Area—this remote facility would capitalize on Florida’s natural defenses.
ICE currently holds around 53,000 migrants in facilities funded for just 41,500 beds, according to WLRN.
This “Alligator Alcatraz” could house up to 1,000 criminal illegal entrants, built in as little as 30–60 days — a swift addition to national security infrastructure.
Rather than costly walls or fences, natural barriers—alligators, pythons, dense swampland—secure the perimeter. According to Uthmeier, this creates a “low‑cost, efficient opportunity. “
“Alligator Alcatraz: the one-stop shop to carry out President Trump’s mass deportation agenda,” Uthmeier wrote on X.
Attorney General James Uthmeier: Attorney General James Uthmeier here at the Miami-Dade–Collier Training Facility. This is an old, virtually abandoned airport facility right in the middle of the Everglades. Florida has been leading on immigration enforcement, supporting the Trump administration and ICE’s efforts to detain and deport criminal aliens. The Governor tasked state leaders to identify places for new temporary detention facilities. I think this is the best one. I call it “Alligator 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 much in the perimeter. If people get out, there’s not much waiting for them other than alligators and pythons—nowhere to go, nowhere to hide.
Within just 30 to 60 days after we begin construction, it could be up and running and could house as many as a thousand criminal aliens. This presents a great opportunity for the state of Florida with Miami-Dade and Collier County’s “Alligator Alcatraz.” We’re ready to go.
WATCH:
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
