Whistleblowers Tell House Democrats ICE Crammed 342 People Into a Miramar Holding Facility Built for 50 and Kept Elderly Detainees Shackled Up to 16 Hours a Day — Robert Garcia Calls It "Explosive New Information," Maxwell Frost Calls the Cover-Up "Abhorrent," and DHS Answers That "Being in Detention Is a Choice"

September 25, 2026

On Sept. 21, 2026, the top Democrats on House Oversight (Robert Garcia) and Homeland Security (Bennie Thompson), with Rep. Maxwell Frost of Orlando, released whistleblower accounts and photos of ICE's Miramar and Orlando holding facilities in Florida. The whistleblowers describe men, women, families and chronically ill elderly people held "for days to weeks in abusive and life-threatening conditions, including overcrowded cells, prolonged shackling, inadequate access to medical care and hygiene, insufficient food, and limited to no legal access." Miramar at one point held 342 people against a capacity of about 50; detainees slept on concrete or in chains, some elderly people were restrained up to 16 hours a day, and staff reported overflowing toilets and black mold in the vents. The lawmakers wrote to ICE's acting director and the DHS inspector general demanding answers. DHS did not address the specific allegations, instead urging people in the country illegally to self-deport with the CBP Home app and saying "Being in detention is a choice." Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz had toured Miramar in July and described detainees "lining the floors."