Amnesty International Uncovers Nightmarish 'Box Cells' At Florida's 'Alligator Alcatraz' Detention Facility

A new Amnesty International investigation says detainees at Florida's Everglades 'Alligator Alcatraz' were confined in small, metal 'box' cells so extreme that the treatment amounts to torture.

Amnesty's fieldwork describes people held for immigration reasons being locked for hours in a tiny outdoor cage known inside the facility as 'the box', deprived of water and shade, exposed to heat and insects, and denied basic medical attention; a pattern the group says is part of a broader system of degrading and unlawful treatment at two Florida detention sites.

The organisation calls for immediate investigations, the closure of the Everglades facility, and urgent reforms at the Krome North Service Processing Center in Miami.

'Box' Punishment: Testimonies and Conditions

Former detainees interviewed by Amnesty describe being forced into a metal enclosure roughly described as two-by-two or four-by-four feet and left for hours on end, sometimes without water and surrounded by biting insects.

Amnesty recorded accounts of prolonged shackling during transport, sleep deprivation, constant bright lighting, and withheld medication. The report argues that those practices meet the definition of cruel, inhuman, or degrading treatment under international law.

Amnesty's 30-page report, written after a September 2025 research visit, includes first-hand testimony and documentary evidence alleging violent repression of those who sought help and incidents the group describes as 'enforced disappearances' due to a lack of proper tracking.

The investigators call the Everglades site, established by the State of Florida, a facility operating in 'inhuman, unsanitary and unregulated' conditions.

Legal Challenges and Oversight

Civil liberties organisations have already taken their case to the courts. A series of federal complaints and class actions have challenged the legality of the Everglades centre's operations, arguing detainees have been denied access to counsel, meaningful hearings, and safe conditions.

Complaints filed in August 2025 and related filings document claims that detainees were removed from normal immigration-court processes and that decisions about where cases may be heard were confused or withheld, in some instances prompting judges to transfer claims between districts.

The American Civil Liberties Union and allied legal teams represent detainees and legal-services groups in litigation that seeks injunctive relief and class certification; filings allege the site's creation was rushed, that essential oversight was absent, and that state and federal actors cooperated in ways that may be unlawful. Parallel environmental and administrative lawsuits have also challenged how the facility was authorised and built in the Everglades.

Krome's Longstanding Problems and the Private Operator

Krome North Service Processing Center, a long-established facility near Miami, appears alongside Alligator Alcatraz in Amnesty's findings. The report documents overcrowding, medical neglect, and abusive disciplinary practices at Krome and cites interviews with former detainees who say shackling and degrading treatment are routine.

Human rights monitors, including Human Rights Watch, previously documented abusive practices at Krome earlier in 2025, showing this is not an isolated or new pattern.

Day-to-day operations at Krome are managed by a private contractor, Akima Global Services, under a major Department of Homeland Security contract. Public procurement records and contracting reporting show Akima holds contracts worth hundreds of millions in immigration-detention support services.

The contract widely reported as supporting Krome's operations is approximately £517 million ($685 million). Amnesty and legal groups argue that private management has not cured longstanding accountability problems at the centre.

Calls For Action And Official Responses

Amnesty has called for the immediate closure of the Everglades site, independent investigations into deaths and abuse, a prohibition on the use of state-run detention for immigration custody, and redirecting funds toward health and housing services.

The group also urges full compliance with U.S. and international human-rights law, including independent monitoring and accountability for alleged torture and enforced disappearances.

Florida state officials and some federal agencies have pushed back. State spokespeople have described some allegations as politically motivated and emphasised that steps were taken to provide hearings and legal access after litigation and public scrutiny intensified.

Meanwhile, attorneys for detainees say court records show many due-process problems persist and that legal remedies remain necessary. Key cases remain active in federal courts, where judges have both moved parts of filings and, in other instances, considered temporary measures affecting access and oversight.

One line from a detainee in Amnesty's file captures the toll the detainees carry: 'You feel like your life is over,' and maybe, for some of them, it is.