Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis has announced that the state will open a second facility dedicated to detaining, processing, and deporting illegal aliens.
The move will further boost Florida’s role in President Donald Trump’s aggressive national deportation push.
The new site, dubbed the “Deportation Depot,” will be located at Baker Correctional Institution in Sanderson, Florida, less than an hour west of Jacksonville.
The facility will be slightly smaller than Florida’s recently opened Alligator Alcatraz complex.
However, it will still have the capacity to hold more than 1,300 illegal immigrants awaiting deportation flights.
Like Alligator Alcatraz, the project will be developed by the Florida Division of Emergency Management with the expectation of later reimbursement from the Department of Homeland Security.
“Alligator Alcatraz has the runway right there — that’s a one-stop shop,” DeSantis said at a press conference outside the Baker facility on Thursday.
“But here at Baker Correctional, we’re right down the road from Lake City Airport, and so that is something that’s going to make a difference.”
The airport is just 15 minutes away, giving the new depot quick access for staging deportation flights.
“We want to process, stage, and then return illegal aliens to their home country,” DeSantis declared.
“That is the name of the game, and that’s what we do in Florida.
“We know that this is an important national priority — not only of President Trump, but of the American people.”
The governor said the Deportation Depot is just the latest in a series of Florida-led efforts to aid the Trump administration’s enforcement strategy.
In addition to building Alligator Alcatraz, Florida became the first state in the country to pass legislation mandating that all state and local law enforcement agencies fully cooperate with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).
“We have done more on this than any other state by a country mile,” DeSantis said.
“We’re the only state in the country that requires all state and local law enforcement agencies to participate in ICE operations.
“We have that as a requirement of our state law.”
WATCH:
🚨 BREAKING: Governor Ron DeSantis announces Florida is now going to have TWO operational state-created illegal alien detention centers to facilitate deportations.
– Alligator Alcatraz
– Deportation DepotEVERY STATE – FOLLOW SUIT!
— Eric Daugherty (@EricLDaugh) August 14, 2025
While DeSantis did not give an exact opening date, the announcement comes just weeks after a Democrat-aligned federal judge blocked further development at Alligator Alcatraz.
However, the judge allowed ongoing operations to continue.
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