Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth released footage early Thursday morning showing the first flight of “high threat” criminal illegal immigrants being dropped off at Guantanamo Bay for detention.
Hegseth posted a video on X showing U.S. military and Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) personnel escorting illegal immigrants off a plane and into vans for transportation to the detention camp. The Trump administration announced last week that the U.S. would send illegal immigrants who committed violent crimes to the military prison. The Department of Defense said the plane arrived sometime Wednesday, while other media outlets reported that the flight landed on Tuesday.
“The first flight of high-threat criminal illegals aliens has arrived at Naval Station Guantanamo Bay, Cuba,” Hegseth wrote. “These criminals trampled over our previously wide open border to bring violence and mayhem to our communities. President Trump has taken swift action to expel them immediately from our county, and our nation’s finest are helping lead the way in this critical mission.”
The first flight of high-threat criminal illegals aliens has arrived at Naval Station Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. These criminals trampled over our previously wide open border to bring violence and mayhem to our communities. President Trump has taken swift action to expel them… pic.twitter.com/Kml8WX3kIK
— Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth (@SecDef) February 6, 2025
The Department of Homeland Security said that each of the ten illegal immigrants transported were members of the Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua, which the White House designated as a foreign terrorist organization last month. The gang has a reported presence in at least 16 states.
The Defense Department said that the gang members were not being held alongside Islamic terrorist detainees but in empty detention facilities.
The Guantanamo Bay detention camp, also known as GITMO, is a U.S. military prison within a U.S. Naval base off the coast of Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. It was established after the 2001 terrorist attacks to hold terrorism suspects and “illegal enemy combatants.”
Previously, Hegseth said that Guantanamo may be used to hold illegals while they work out an agreement to send them back to their home countries.
“It’s folks who may be in transit to their home country or a safe, third harbor country, and it’s taking a little time to move with that processing and with the paperwork,” he said. “Better they be held at a safe location like Guantanamo Bay.”
The flight comes after President Donald Trump issued a memorandum on January 29 directing Hegseth and Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem to take action to send “high-priority criminal aliens” to Guantanamo.
“Some of them are so bad we don’t even trust the countries to hold them,” Trump said before signing the executive memo. “We don’t want them coming back so we’re going to send them out to Guantanamo. This is going to double our capacity immediately.”
While the base is currently equipped to hold 120 illegal immigrants, the Trump administration says it will expand capacity to be able to hold 30,000. Up to 500 Marines are also expected to be stationed at the base to help with operations and security.
