NewsNBC Miami PoliticsMay 30, 2026United States
ICE Considering Sale of Mega-Warehouses and Aircraft Purchased for Detention
The Department of Homeland Security is evaluating the potential sale of large warehouses and government-owned aircraft acquired earlier this year for mass immigration detention. These assets, purchased under former Secretary Kristi Noem to support a 100,000-person detention capacity, are being reviewed by current Secretary Markwayne Mullin as part of an agency-wide assessment.
Read the full story at NBC Miami PoliticsWhy It Matters
The potential sale of these assets could impact federal spending and local land use in communities where warehouses were purchased, as the agency shifts away from the previous goal of holding 100,000 detainees.
Key Facts
- DHS is considering the sale of several warehouses previously purchased for use as mega-detention centers.
- ICE is considering the sale of government-owned aircraft, including a luxury Boeing 737 Max 8, purchased under former Secretary Noem.
- The total cost of the warehouse purchases was estimated at over $38 billion.
- The agency has abandoned the previous goal of maintaining a 100,000-person detention capacity.
- Secretary Markwayne Mullin paused new warehouse purchases in March.
- The DHS Inspector General is currently auditing whether the warehouse purchases were cost-effective.
- The city of Social Circle, Georgia, filed a lawsuit alleging ICE paid more than five times the assessed value for a warehouse in their town.
- Maryland successfully sued to stop the development of an ICE warehouse near Hagerstown.
- Senator Roger Wicker publicly opposed the conversion of a warehouse in Byhalia, Mississippi, into a detention center.