Scandal Erupts After Alligator Alcatraz Closure: Two Guards Accused of Beating Migrant

• Alligator Alcatraz security guards
• Migrant reports alleged assault
• Both deny being guilty

Two security guards from Alligator Alcatraz are facing charges for allegedly assaulting a migrant who was detained months before the controversial Florida migrant facility closed.

The accused were arrested in June for an incident that occurred on January 25 against Rigoberto Rodríguez, according to information from Collier County prosecutors cited by the Miami Herald.

Both guards pleaded not guilty and were later released after paying a $1,000 bond, as the criminal process continues.

The case is particularly significant because it would be the first known criminal case for alleged mistreatment of a detainee related to this migrant facility.

What happened to the migrant detained at Alligator Alcatraz?

Testimonies from other migrants indicate that the incident began after several detainees protested the conditions inside the facility, including the alleged lack of water and food.

According to these accounts, one of the guards allegedly knocked Rodríguez to the ground and then beat him during the confrontation that occurred inside the center.

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The second accused allegedly hit the migrant in the face after Rodríguez was transferred to another section of the facility.

The defense offers a different version: it claims that Rodríguez started spitting at the agents and that they used force to subdue him.

First known criminal case for alleged mistreatment

The accusations now bring to court complaints about the treatment received by migrants inside a facility that generated controversy almost from its opening.

Humanitarian organizations had previously questioned the detention conditions, while environmental groups maintained another battle over the possible effects of the facility on the nearby ecosystem.

However, the new accusations must be resolved in court: the fact that the guards have been charged does not mean they have been found guilty of assaulting the detainee.

The not-guilty plea opens a dispute over what happened that day and whether the force used was justified under the circumstances.

Why did Alligator Alcatraz close in Florida?

Alligator Alcatraz opened in July 2025 at a former airfield near the Everglades and quickly became a symbol of the migrant crackdown driven during the Trump Administration.

The facility ultimately closed in June 2026, after months marked by lawsuits related to both the treatment of migrants and environmental concerns.

Florida’s Republican Governor, Ron DeSantis, defended the facility’s operation and said after its closure that it had «fulfilled its mission».

DeSantis also noted that operations linked to the facility allowed for nearly 30,000 additional deportations, a figure used by Florida to defend its migrant strategy.

What will happen to the Alligator Alcatraz site?

The closure did not end the controversy surrounding the complex, but it opened a new discussion about the future of the nearly 10,000 acres where it was installed.

Florida returned the land to Miami-Dade County in August, after having used it to build and temporarily operate the detention center.

Among the possibilities being studied is selling the land or transferring it to the National Park Service or other organizations dedicated to recovering and conserving wetlands, according to ‘EFE’ and ‘Miami Herald’.

As that debate continues, the process against the two guards will once again draw attention to what happened inside Alligator Alcatraz and the treatment its detainees received.