Aurora ICE facility population near capacity after recent expansion
The Immigration and Customs Enforcement detention center in Aurora, operated by private prison firm GEO Group, is pictured on Jan. 30, 2025. (Photo by Chase Woodruff/Colorado Newsline)
Reports from oversight visits conducted by U.S. Rep. Jason Crow’s staff show the immigration detention center in Aurora is close to hitting its newly increased population capacity.
About 1,200 people were in custody at the Immigration and Customs Enforcement facility at the end of September. The facility recently increased its capacity from 1,360 to 1,530 detainees, and while Crow’s office did not get an exact number, ICE staff on Jan. 5 told Crow staff the facility was “slightly below capacity.”
Federal law gives members of Congress the authority to conduct unannounced oversight visits of immigration detention facilities. Crow, an Aurora Democrat, attempted to visit the facility in July but was denied entry, prompting a lawsuit brought by Crow, Rep. Joe Neguse of Lafayette and other members of Congress.…