ICE pushes back, says congresswomen arrived at Florida facility with 'hostile intentions'

Anthony Man, South Florida Sun-Sentinel on May 5, 2025

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FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. — U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement on Monday rejected assessments made by U.S. Reps. Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick and Frederica Wilson after they visited a Broward County ICE facility to investigate the death of a detainee.

Juan Agudelo, interim field office director for ICE in Miami, said statements from Cherfilus-McCormick and Wilson were “categorically false. These allegations are deliberate attempts to discredit ICE.”

ICE is at the forefront of President Donald Trump’s efforts to round up and deport people who aren’t in the country legally.

Cherfilus-McCormick and Wilson said Monday afternoon that they’re not deterred by the ICE response to what they reported after visiting the Broward Transitional Center in Deerfield Beach.

“This statement is nothing more than a distraction from the egregious issues we found at the facility, from detainees sleeping on the floor to the fact that a single doctor was on call ‘caring’ for hundreds of individuals. Instead of exerting all of its resources on petty personal attacks through the media, ICE should be more focused on providing transparency to the American people,” Cherfilus-McCormick said via email.

Separately, Wilson said via email that her objective was to “uncover the truth, and as a member of Congress, I cannot and will not sit idly as reports keep coming out of inhumane conditions at different ICE facilities. … ICE must stop wasting its time attacking members of Congress for simply conducting oversight. Instead, they should be worried about following the law, treating immigrants with dignity, and providing honest answers to the American people.”

Cherfilus-McCormick and Wilson visited the Broward Transitional Center on Friday to try to learn more about the death of Marie Ange Blaise, a 44-year-old Haitian woman who was being detained there. On April 29, ICE announced Blaise had died at the center on April 25.

Cherfilus-McCormick said Friday that detainees told the congresswoman Blaise had complained of chest pain “for quite a few days” and was given medication the morning of her death, but the chest pains continued.

“From the beginning of the visit, we were met with open hostility and evasiveness by staff. This tour was a complete departure from my visit to the facility in March 2022, in which personnel talked with me and were transparent. You have to ask yourself why,” Cherfilus-McCormick said.

“Marie Blaise should be alive today. I will not stop until her loved ones get the justice they deserve, and all those in ICE custody are treated with basic dignity,” she said.

ICE didn’t immediately respond to questions about the congressional visit on Friday. On Monday, it provided the statement from Agudelo, who focused on Wilson. She visited another ICE site, the Krome Detention Center in Miami-Dade County, on April 24 to investigate conditions there.

The Miami field office is responsible for Florida, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands.

Agudelo said that during their visit to the Deerfield Beach facility on Friday “the congressional delegation immediately met ICE leadership with hostile intentions, not caring to see any other part of the facility, except the medical area. Congresswoman Wilson demanded answers that are part of an ongoing investigation into the recent death of a detainee. She was informed repeatedly that her questions would be answered at the conclusion of the investigation, however, she unprofessionally persisted in peppering every member present with questions.”

Later in the statement, Agudelo added: “To suggest that ICE attempted to mislead these elected officials is offensive and slanders to the professionalism of our personnel. This delegation met our team with hostile intentions during the visit, and carried that attitude to their impromptu press conference outside the facility. ICE is committed to transparency and fully supports congressional oversight. We take our responsibility to provide accurate information to both Congress and the public very seriously.”

Wilson was equally strong in her response to Agudelo.

“My goal in questioning ICE officials was simple: to get the answers the American people deserve. ICE didn’t appreciate that we weren’t here to take a casual tour and nod our heads at everything they said. We ask tough questions because there are real concerns about these facilities that are funded through taxpayer dollars,” Wilson said. “And this isn’t my first rodeo — I know ICE officials clean up the facility beforehand and present a polished narrative of the facility to us, hoping I won’t see the full story.”

Cherfilus-McCormick and Wilson said on Friday that ICE staff at the Broward Transitional Center stopped answering questions when they pressed for information about health care staffing and procedures.

ICE said its staff provided lots of information to the congresswoman, including living conditions, recreational facilities, and medical care. “In fact, ICE leadership detailed the medical care detainees receive from the time they step into the facility and throughout their stay. All aliens in ICE custody receive medical, dental, and mental health screening, including 24-hour emergency care. At no time during detention is a detained illegal alien denied medical care.”

Cherfilus-McCormick, who represents most of the African American and Caribbean American communities in Broward and Palm Beach counties, is the only Haitian American member of Congress. Wilson, who represents South Broward and Miami-Dade counties, represents Miami’s Little Haiti community. Both are Democrats.

Blaise was stopped by Customs at Border Protection in the U.S. Virgin Islands on Feb. 12, and eventually transferred to ICE custody. She spent six weeks in a Louisiana correctional facility and in early April was transferred to ICE’s Miami Division, and the Broward Transitional Center, the agency said previously.

The Broward Transitional Center, located near the Monarch Hill landfill widely known as Mount Trashmore, is operated by the GEO Group, the national private prison company based in Boca Raton.

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