A report published by The Guardian on Thursday revealed that the US government's immigration detention center at the Guantanamo Bay naval base is now being operated by Akima, a corporate conglomerate with a history of controversial practices at other migrant facilities across the United States.

Despite previous audits and a civil rights complaint revealing instances of inappropriate use of force and unsafe conditions, Akima was awarded a $163.4 million contract in August 2024 by the Biden administration to manage the Guantanamo migrant detention center until June 2029.

The facility, which has historically detained migrants intercepted at sea, is now housing individuals transferred from US soil under a new executive order signed by President Donald Trump. The order directs the expansion of the migrant operations center at Guantánamo to accommodate up to 30,000 migrants. The expansion has already begun, with new tent cities set up to increase capacity to 2,000 detainees.

Akima, headquartered in Virginia, operates under the umbrella of the Nana Regional Corporation, an Alaskan Native corporation that allows it to receive federal contracts reserved for small and minority-owned businesses. The conglomerate oversees more than 40 subsidiaries with over 2,000 government contracts worldwide, providing services ranging from IT maintenance to armed security.

Concerns have emerged regarding Akima's management practices. A federal audit of a Miami facility operated by Akima reported multiple incidents of alleged "inappropriate use of force," including an incident where guards pepper-sprayed a man in solitary confinement despite no threat to their safety. Similar complaints have been raised about Akima's operations at other immigration detention centers in New York, Texas, Florida, and Arizona.

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Guantanamo Secrecy

The expansion of the Guantanamo facility has faced significant criticism from human rights advocates. Jesse Franzblau, senior policy analyst with the National Immigrant Justice Center, stated, "The Guantanamo Bay military base is seared in the minds of the world as a dark site of torture and impunity. There is no rational justification for shipping off immigrants to Guantanamo Bay, which should not be used to detain any human beings. Sending people there now without any due process or access to counsel flies in the face of US and international law."

Human rights organizations have raised concerns over the secrecy surrounding the facility, which limits public and media scrutiny. Contracting documents reveal that migrants under Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) custody are transported around the base using "black-out vans" with "hand restraints and black-out goggles to obscure their vision." Photos from the facility show blacked-out buses in use, intensifying concerns over transparency and accountability.

"I'm very concerned that as we move on to detaining people at Guantanamo, there will be less and less visibility for the American public as to what is going on there," Bianca Tylek, founder and executive director of Worth Rises, told The Guardian.

Read more: Native Americans say tribal members harassed by immigration agents

The Trump administration has not disclosed how many migrants are currently held at Guantanamo or the duration of their detention. Reports suggest that the recent detainees are primarily from Venezuela, with some alleged to have ties to the Venezuelan prison gang Tren de Aragua. However, conflicting reports from family members claim that many of the detained individuals are innocent and not associated with the gang.

Amid mounting scrutiny, a coalition of civil rights organizations has filed a lawsuit, demanding that migrant detainees at Guantánamo be granted access to legal counsel. Despite these legal challenges and public outcry, the expansion of the Guantanamo migrant detention center continues, drawing attention to the broader implications of US immigration enforcement policies.