Vendors start leaving Alligator Alcatraz facility as uncertainty grows over its future: "That place was very inhumane"
New signs are emerging that the controversial Alligator Alcatraz detention center in the Florida Everglades may soon shut down, despite conflicting messages from state officials in recent weeks.
Sources familiar with the operation told CBS News Miami on Monday that vendors have been instructed to begin a "full demobilization" of the facility. One company that provided services at the detention center was notified on June 13 that its services would no longer be needed and that nearly 150 employees could lose their jobs as early as June 26.
From the ground and the air, however, little appeared to have changed Monday morning.
Chopper 4 flew over the detention center and observed no visible signs that the facility was being dismantled. Tents and lighting structures remained in place.
Tania Galloni, an attorney with Earthjustice, said advocates have received mixed signals from state officials regarding the future of the facility.
"It's just a symptom of what has been the problem since day one with this facility — lack of transparency," Galloni said.
She noted that notices to vendors circulating on social media are consistent with reports that have surfaced over the past several weeks.
"At the same time, as far as we know, the tents are still up, the lighting is still up," Galloni said.
According to sources, the vendor notifications mark the beginning of what could be the end of a detention center that has cost taxpayers approximately $1.2 billion.
For family members of former detainees, the prospect of closure brings relief.
"It makes me happy. I don't think that's a place that should be open for anything," said Eva Ducasse, whose husband, 41-year-old Abeidi Ducasse, was held at the facility for about two months, from December 2025 to February 2026.
Ducasse said her husband ultimately agreed to voluntary removal to Mexico.
"That place was very inhumane," she said. "Every Sunday I would go stand at Alligator Alcatraz with another group of family members. We would protest every single Sunday he was in there."
The federal government reiterated Monday what it said last week, telling CBS News Miami that detainees housed at the facility were transferred to other detention centers because of the start of hurricane season.
The State of Florida did not respond to requests for comment. However, Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier addressed the issue during a press conference in Tampa.
"Now that the federal government is resourced and standing on its mission, using its own authority, it is no longer necessary, and the plan has always been to protect the Everglades and to take it back to a protected area, that is not a commercial business and airport," Uthmeier said.
His comments represent the clearest indication yet from a state official that the facility may be winding down.
The remarks contrast with statements made just last week by Florida Emergency Management Director Kevin Guthrie, who said the detention center was not closing.
As of Monday evening, no formal announcement had been made regarding when the facility would cease operations or when the demobilization process would be completed.
