The Occupational Safety and Health Administration cited three contractors for safety violations in its investigation of the 2025 death of a worker helping to build a large detention facility.
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Hector Gonzalez died last July after being crushed by falling materials in a construction accident in the build-out of Camp East Montana in El Paso, Texas, a massive detention center that has housed more than 3,000 immigrants at points.
An ensuing investigation from federal regulators found three subcontractors that helped build the camp in violation of safety standards related to their use of powered industrial trucks: Base International, JMJ Production Services and Fulfillment Personnel Services, Public Citizen first reported.
JMJ Production Services and Fulfillment Personnel Services each paid reduced fees of $15K as part of OHSA settlements in February, according to The Associated Press. Meanwhile, Base International is contesting its $11,585 fine.
The Army awarded a contract worth up to $2.7B to Acquisition Logistics in July to build and operate a 5,000-bed detention center near the border, Public Citizen reported. Gonzalez's death came days after the contract was awarded, and the site opened the next month, becoming the largest detention center for immigrants waiting for or challenging deportations.
The camp has seen disease outbreaks, three detainee deaths and allegations of inhumane conditions, the AP reports. U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, to which the Army transferred the contract, replaced Acquisition Logistics as the primary contractor in March with a no-bid contract awarded to Amentum Services.
The Department of Homeland Security has had a major impact on commercial real estate since President Donald Trump returned to office, spending almost $1.1B on 11 warehouses that it is redeveloping into detention centers, according to a Bisnow analysis of deed records and public reports.
Following the ousting of former DHS Secretary Kristi Noem in March, the agency is pausing its $38.3B plan to purchase and convert additional warehouses into detention centers.
The agency has also scooped up scores of new office leases, reportedly giving landlords above-market deals in some cases.
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