Claims of abuse at Fort Bliss ICE facility; DHS calls them ‘categorically false’

EL PASO, Texas - Immigrants being held at a U.S. Immigrations and Customs Enforcement detention facility in El Paso are being threatened, subjected to physical abuse and coerced to cross the border into Mexico by officers, according to claims made in a letter sent to the agency by human rights groups earlier this week.

The letter, penned by the American Civil Liberty Union and other organizations, claims detainees at Camp East Montana, located at Fort Bliss, were "handcuffed and rounded up" before being loaded into vans and taken to the U.S.-Mexico border and told to go across the border into Mexico by masked officers even if the detainee did not have a removal order to the country. Those that refused to cross the border were subject to physical abuse and threats of long-term imprisonment, the ACLU said.

In September 2025, a Washington Post report noted that a leaked internal ICE inspection found the Fort Bliss facility violated over 60 federal detention standards in the first 50 days of its opening.

The letter cites sworn declarations and interviews with detainees alleging excessive force by officers, medical neglect and a lack of food and hygiene supplies for those being held.

The other side:

In a statement, Assistant Department of Homeland Security Secretary Tricia McLaughlin called the allegations from the groups "categorically false."

"This is fearmongering clickbait. As our brave ICE law enforcement is facing a more than 1150% increase in assaults against them, the ACLU is choosing to smear them with anonymous allegations," McLaughlin said. "Here are the facts: any claim that there are "inhumane" conditions at ICE detention centers are categorically false. No detainees are being beaten or abused."

Interviews allege abuse, lack of medical care at Camp East Montana

What they're saying:

A teenage detainee using the pseudonym "Samuel" told attorneys that officers beat him to the point he had injuries across his body and suffered a broken tooth from being slammed to the ground. Samuel told attorneys that an officer "grabbed my testicles and firmly crushed them" and another "forced his fingers deep into my ears." Samuel said he lost consciousness and had to be taken to the hospital by ambulance.

Another detainee, "Eduardo," said: "Guards started stomping on me until I lost consciousness" after he asked for his prescription medications. The ACLU said Eduardo was taken to the hospital and when he was brought back to the facility he was placed in a solitary confinement cell for five days. Eduardo said he was beaten on other occasions after the incident for continuing to ask for his medications.

Others interviewed by the ACLU told similar stories about a lack of medical attention, with one noting "the guards seem to have to see you lying on the floor" in order to provide care.

In the case of Samuel, he told attorneys that he filed around 10 requests for molar pain, migraines, stomach issues, depression and anxiety before he was seen by medical staff and then was only given a Tylenol and sent away.

McLaughlin said detainees are provided with proper medical care from the time they arrive at the facility.

The other side:

"It is a longstanding practice to provide comprehensive medical care from the moment an alien enters ICE custody," McLaughlin said. "This is the best healthcare that many aliens have received in their entire lives."

Detainees at Fort Bliss claim lack of food

The ACLU said almost all detainees interviewed said the facility did not provide a sufficient amount of food for them. The detainees said that some people have gone hungry because the proper amount of food is not being given to housing units at the facility. The detainees told the ACLU and attorneys that the food provided is often spoiled and inedible, causing widespread vomiting and diarrhea.

ICE detention standards require three meals to be served per day and at least two of those must be hot meals that are "nutritious" and "prepared and served in a sanitary and hygenic food service operation."

In October, Texas Congresswoman Veronica Escobar wrote a letter to DHS Sec. Kristi Noem stating she heard from detainees at Camp East Montana that drinking water at the site "continues to taste foul" and that some in custody were skipping meals because food quality had not improved, and specific diets were not being accommodated.

The other side:

"Meals are certified by dietitians," McLaughlin said.

The letter from the ACLU also claims detainees are being held in dirty conditions and without access to attorneys and legal counsel.

"All detainees are provided with proper meals, medical treatment, access to showers, and have opportunities to communicate with lawyers and their family members," McLaughlin said. "No lawbreakers in the history of human civilization have been treated better than illegal aliens in the United States. Get a grip."

The groups are calling for ICE to end detentions at the facility and to end the removal of those detained at Camp East Montana to other countries.