The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) is accusing Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) of carrying out what it describes as horrific acts of intimate torture, sexual abuse, and brutal violence against men held inside one of the largest immigration detention facilities in the United States.
In a detailed letter and accompanying declarations sent to ICE, the ACLU say men detained at the Fort Bliss immigration detention facility in El Paso, Texas, have reported being beaten, sexually assaulted, denied medical care, and intimidated into self-deportation.
The allegations are based on interviews with more than 45 people currently detained at the facility and include 16 signed declarations describing abuse by officers.
The claims come as the Trump administration rapidly expands immigration detention, including the unprecedented use of US military bases and as deaths inside ICE custody continue to mount.
One of the most troubling cases cited by the ACLU is that of Geraldo Lunas Campos, who spent months detained at Camp East Montana in El Paso before dying in ICE custody.
His death has been ruled a homicide following reports that an officer choked him during an altercation.
Another detainee, Francisco Gaspar Andres, a Guatemalan immigrant, died on December 3, 2025, from liver and kidney failure after failing to receive appropriate medical care at Fort Bliss, according to the ACLU.
‘These are not isolated incidents,’ the organization says, arguing that the deaths point to systemic failures and unchecked violence at the facility.
Geraldo Lunas Campos spent months detained at an ICE facility in El Paso before he died in custody. His death was ruled a homicide with reports an officer choked him in an altercation
The ACLU alleges ICE officers committed physical and sexual abuse against men detained at the Fort Bliss immigration facility in Texas
Among the most disturbing allegations is the account of a detained teenager identified by the pseudonym Samuel, who told investigators he was beaten so badly by officers that he was hospitalized.
Samuel said one officer ‘grabbed my testicles and firmly crushed them,’ while another ‘forced his fingers deep into my ears.’
He said his right front tooth was broken during the assault and that weeks later, damage to his left ear left him with lasting hearing problems.
According to the ACLU, other detained men – including individuals identified as Ignacio, Abel, Benjamin, and Eduardo – described officers crushing their testicles during beatings, sometimes while they were already restrained or after they refused to accept forced removal to Mexico.
‘These acts of violence,’ the ACLU wrote, ‘reflect a pattern of brutality that violates even ICE’s minimal standards.’
ICE began detaining people at Fort Bliss roughly three months ago, while the site was still an active construction zone.
The facility, built on a former Japanese internment camp site, now holds roughly 3,000 people and is just shy of its planned maximum capacity.
Immigrants are housed in tent structures in extreme El Paso heat – a setup the ACLU says marks a dangerous new phase of immigration enforcement under President Donald Trump’s second term.
The ACLU alleges ICE is sexually abusing males in custody by grabbing and bursting their testicles
US Customs and Border Protection security agents guide illegal aliens to board a removal flight at Fort Bliss, Texas
Fort Bliss is the largest immigration detention facility in the US, holding roughly 3,000 people
With a reported $1.2billion price tag, Fort Bliss is the administration’s first immigration detention facility on a military base, but likely not the last.
According to detainees, conditions inside Fort Bliss are dire.
Each pod holds 60 to 70 people, but meals are reportedly sufficient for only about 50.
As a result, detainees say they are forced to ration food, skip meals, or rotate who eats.
When food is available, it is often spoiled or partially frozen, leading to vomiting, diarrhea, and rapid weight loss.
Basic hygiene supplies are scarce. Detainees report receiving only a few rolls of toilet paper per pod, going days without soap, and lacking access to clean clothing or functioning showers.
Flooded tents and bathrooms filled with water mixed with urine and feces have created what the ACLU describes as squalid and unsafe living conditions.
Medical care is described as equally alarming.
Josefina, who has diabetes, told investigators she receives insulin at irregular intervals, causing dangerous spikes and crashes in her blood sugar.
Migrants from Guatemala are seen being deported back to their country aboard a US military plane at the Fort Bliss facility in El Paso, Texas. File photo from January 30, 2025
Fernando said he went 15 days without his prescribed blood pressure medication. Ignacio, who previously suffered a stroke, reported blurry vision and other warning signs while officers allegedly failed to provide timely care.
Detainees consistently told investigators that medical requests are ignored for days and that people often receive attention only after fainting or collapsing.
Access to attorneys is also limited, according to the ACLU.
When Fort Bliss opened, legal visitation relied almost entirely on tablets, offering little privacy for confidential legal calls.
While protocols have since been adjusted, legal service providers are now reportedly allowed to meet with only ten detainees per day – an unworkable limit for a population of roughly 3,000.
Many detainees lack working PINs to contact attorneys, and the facility’s ‘law library’ reportedly contains no legal materials.
The ACLU argues ICE has actively limited oversight of the facility, even though members of Congress have authority to conduct announced or unannounced visits.
Illegal border crossers, who were detained by US Border Patrol agents, are seen in a jail at the Central Processing Center in McAllen, Texas, pictured in June 2018 during Trump’s first term
Immigrants now housed in tent structures in extreme El Paso heat – a setup the ACLU says marks a dangerous new phase of immigration enforcement under Trump’s second term. This photo sees migrants being held in a jail at the Central Processing Center in McAllen, Texas
According to the organization, ICE requires seven days’ notice for congressional visits and routinely denies access to Fort Bliss. During the recent government shutdown, ICE classified its congressional relations staff as ‘non-essential,’ further cutting off information channels.
‘If this is the state of a brand-new, billion-dollar facility within its first 90 days,’ the ACLU wrote, ‘the outlook for the next wave of military-base detention centers is dire.’
The organization warns that Fort Bliss is not an anomaly, but a preview of what lies ahead as new detention sites open nationwide.
Reports indicate ICE is already scouting additional military bases, including Fort Dix in New Jersey and a Coast Guard base in New York.
‘What we are witnessing at Fort Bliss is not an accident,’ the ACLU said. ‘It is the predictable result of reckless expansion, minimal safeguards, and virtually no oversight.’
