The U.S. Department of Homeland Security is hitting back at a report by left-wing British newspaper The Guardian that alleges poor and unsafe conditions in ICE’s “Louisiana Lockup” facility.
The Guardian’s report quotes two pro-illegal immigrant advocacy groups alleging 19 detainees are hunger striking because of a lack of access to medical care, prescription medications, basic hygiene products, and clean water.
“The real emergency is what’s happening inside: people are being denied life-saving medication, and some may die as a result,” said one of the groups, the Southeast Dignity Not Detention Coalition, according to The Guardian. “These hunger strikers are bravely speaking out, risking retaliation from Camp J guards and putting their own lives on the line to ensure those around them receive the medical care they need.”
However, DHS says the allegations are “completely false,” and the facility houses some of the most violent and dangerous illegals ICE has detained.
ANGOLA HUNGER STRIKE: Louisiana officials have denied allegations that detainees at a new ICE facility had been on hunger strike for days over poor treatment, but acknowledged several men were refusing meals, @RachelHandleyTV reports. https://t.co/O4vr7NtsT5 pic.twitter.com/Lgg5ERQ4vq
— WWL-TV (@WWLTV) September 23, 2025
“Allegations made by criminal illegal aliens that they do not have access to medical or mental health care at this facility are completely false,” the agency said. “Detainees have full access to medical treatment, three proper meals per day, legal counsel, and other essential items.”
According to DHS Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin, “there is no hunger strike at Louisiana Lockup.”
“Unfortunately, this isn’t the first time, nor will it be the last, that the media repeats unsubstantiated, false allegations peddled by criminal illegal aliens,” she said. “This facility is housing the WORST OF THE WORST including 26 child predators, 20 other sex offenders, and 28 murderers. If these are not the worst of the worst than please tell me who is,” she added.
#NOW: We are inside the notorious Angola Prison where one of the camps is now being used as an ICE detention facility called “Louisiana Lockup.” It used to house the most violent prisoners and was used for solitary confinement. Now it will be used to detain and deport the “worst… pic.twitter.com/nvWwZHOVwq
— Brooke Taylor (@Brooketaylortv) September 3, 2025
Among those criminal illegals detained at the facility include Jose Gonzalez Suarez, a convicted murderer in the U.S. illegally from Cuba; Bounmy Thammavongsa, an illegal from Laos convicted of raping a disabled person; and Henry Santamaria Hernandez, an illegal from El Salvador convicted of molestation.
“Any claim there are ‘inhumane’ conditions at ICE detention centers are false,” McLaughlin said. “All detainees are provided with proper meals, medical treatment, and have opportunities to communicate with lawyers and their family members. It is a longstanding practice to provide comprehensive medical care from the moment an alien enters ICE custody. This is the best healthcare that many aliens have received in their entire lives.”
She added: “Ensuring the safety, security, and well-being of individuals in our custody is a top priority at ICE. Why does the media have an obsession with peddling FALSE sob stories of pedophiles, murderers, rapists, and other violent criminals?”
Louisiana officials also denied refusing medical care and said the hunger strikes didn’t occur until after the advocacy groups’ announcement and instead appeared “to have been sparked by false narratives in the media that put the idea in the detainees’ heads.”
