ICE replaces contractor at largest detention camp after scrutiny of living conditions

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U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement is terminating the contractor running its largest detention facility and replacing it with a more experienced firm that will work to improve medical care and other services, the agency said Friday.

The contractor switch at Camp East Montana in El Paso, Texas, comes as it faces scrutiny over living conditions that detainees have described as inhumane since its hasty construction and opening last year.

With an average of nearly 3,000 detainees in six long tent encampments, evidence has mounted to support claims of overcrowding, medical neglect, malnutrition and emotional distress. An outbreak of measles also recently hit the camp, which several Democratic members of Congress have called for closing.

Detainees say they struggle to obtain medication and health care, have lost significant amounts of weight because of a lack of food, and live in fear of security guards known to use force. At least 130 calls to 911 were made in the camp’s first five months, which included two deaths, several suicide attempts, fights and medical emergencies, The Associated Press reported last week.

Acquisition Logistics, LLC, the ousted prime contractor, had been awarded a deal last year worth up to $1.3 billion to build and manage the camp at U.S. Army base Fort Bliss. It had no prior experience running an ICE detention facility, had never won a federal contract worth more than $16 million and lacked a functioning website.

ICE has selected Amentum Services, Inc., which has worked as a subcontractor at Camp East Montana, as the new prime contractor, according to a federal notice published Wednesday and an agency spokesperson who did not provide their name. The Washington Post reported the switch of contractors on Wednesday.

The spokesperson did not say what prompted the termination of Acquisition Logistics’ contract, which records show had been set to run until Sept. 30, 2027, and has caused the government to commit nearly $600 million so far.

ICE has said it recently completed an inspection of conditions at Camp East Montana, but the findings have not been made public. Acquisition Logistics and its president and CEO Ken Wagner didn’t immediately return messages seeking comment.

ICE said Amentum, known for its work with the military and intelligence agencies, was best suited to take over and improve operations.

“Amentum’s size, maturity and pedigree make them the right partner at the right time,” the spokesperson said. “We will work closely with them in their implementation of higher standards of medical care, more thorough case processing and intake procedures, and delivery of performance requirements according to well-defined accountability measures.”

Rep. Veronica Escobar, an El Paso Democrat whose district includes the camp, expressed relief Friday that Acquisition Logistics had been replaced. She reiterated her calls for the facility to be shut down and for the contractors involved to be investigated for “the fraud they’ve perpetrated on the American taxpayer.”

“Whether the new contractor is an improvement remains to be seen, and I remain deeply concerned about the chronic substandard conditions that exist at Camp East Montana,” said Escobar, who has toured the facility seven times.

Based in Chantilly, Virginia, Amentum's parent company describes itself as a “global advanced engineering and technology solutions provider” serving U.S. government agencies and other customers. The company has provided services for ICE and other Department of Homeland Security divisions in the past.

The notice published in a contracting database said ICE was negotiating a no-bid contract with Amentum to run Camp East Montana, including providing secure housing, medical care and transportation. It indicated the contract would last 180 days, and it's unclear what would happen to Camp East Montana after that period.

“The contractor must demonstrate the capacity for rapid operational transition and sustained adherence to all regulatory and performance requirements, thereby safeguarding public safety and supporting national enforcement priorities,” the notice said.

Citing the “proprietary nature” of the camp’s infrastructure, the notice said no vendor other than Amentum could provide uninterrupted services there.

The facility is intended for short-term stays before detainees are shipped out, and the average stay has been nine days, according to ICE data. But some detainees have been kept for weeks or months while they challenge their detention or experience logistical problems related to their pending deportations.

The switch comes as ICE plans to operate warehouses across the country to hold far more detainees at single locations than Camp East Montana, with plans calling for some sites to have up to 8,500. Escobar called on ICE not to open the warehouses, including one planned near El Paso, that she said would “serve only as tools for the administration's inhumanity.”