1. United States
2. Texas
3. Letter

I am writing to demand immediate action regarding the horrific conditions and alleged criminal conduct at Camp East Montana, the nation's largest ICE detention facility located at Fort Bliss Army base outside El Paso, Texas. According to Associated Press reporting based on 911 calls and detainee testimony, staff at this facility have allegedly placed bets on which detainee will die by suicide next, with one guard reportedly paying $500 into a betting pool. Owen Ramsingh, a legal permanent resident who spent weeks at the facility before being deported in February, witnessed these betting pools firsthand. His account is corroborated by the facility's documented crisis: in January alone, Geraldo Lunas Campos, a 55-year-old Cuban man, died in what DHS called an attempted suicide but a medical examiner ruled a homicide, and a 36-year-old Nicaraguan man died by suicide. AP's review of 130 calls to 911 over five months revealed at least six additional incidents where detainees attempted self-harm while expressing suicidal ideations. This facility, which holds approximately 3,000 people in six tents on land that once served as a Japanese American internment camp during World War II, has been operational only since mid-August. Representative Veronica Escobar, who toured the facility, stated that Camp East Montana "should not be operational" and that "people are losing their lives in their experiment." I am calling on you to take three specific actions: first, demand a full criminal investigation by the Department of Justice into the alleged betting pools and all deaths at this facility. Second, support legislation to abolish ICE and replace it with a humane immigration system that does not rely on mass detention. Third, advocate for the immediate prosecution of any guards found to have participated in betting on detainee deaths or contributed to the conditions that led to these tragedies. These allegations represent a complete moral failure. I expect you to act with urgency to ensure accountability and prevent further loss of life.