ANGOLA — The Louisiana State Penitentiary will house some of the “worst of the worst” criminal illegal migrants under a federal partnership expected to be announced Wednesday.
The facility, dubbed Louisiana Lockup, will have 416 beds, according to a Fox News report. Fifty-one illegal migrants have already been moved to the facility, said Governor Jeff Landry in a press conference Wednesday afternoon.
The facility will house around 200 illegal migrant criminal offenders by mid-September with more in the coming months, he added.
Landry said in a statement to Fox News that the facility will give U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) additional space to hold noncitizens with criminal records prior to deportation proceedings.
DHS is partnering with the state to use Camp J, an unused portion of the prison, as an ICE detention center. Funding comes from President Trump’s “Big Beautiful Bill,” which supports ICE detention centers nationwide to help ramp up deportations.
Camp J, once known as “the Dungeon,” consists of four maximum-security buildings and was primarily used for solitary confinement. It closed in 2017 after cell locks malfunctioned, allowing inmates to evade security checks. In 2019, a portion of Camp J was used as a quarantine site for inmates during the COVID-19 pandemic.
This will house the most dangerous, “worst of the worst” offenders for ICE, Landry said, including those illegal aliens convicted of rape, child pornography, human and drug smuggling, and more. Only males will be housed at the facility, Landry clarified.
These individuals are transported from other detention facilities across the country. ICE Deputy Director Madison Sheahan said Angola was chosen because of its security and reputation for ensuring individuals cannot leave or impact the civilian population.
In July, Landry signed an emergency declaration to expedite repairs at Camp J on the 18,000-acre prison grounds.
The governor joined U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi, Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, and ICE Deputy Director Madison Sheahan at the prison for an official announcement of the facility.
The opening of Louisiana Lockup comes as a federal judge ordered the closure of Alligator Alcatraz, an immigration detention facility in Florida. Florida Governor Ron DeSantis said Tuesday the facility will continue operating in some form despite the ruling. Sheahan added that ICE will continue to appeal the decisions of the federal judge.
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