EXCLUSIVE: Influx of Russian, Syrian and Iraqi immigrants are traveling to Mexico to cross the US border, where overwhelmed detention centers are being forced to release them after three days without vetting
The Biden administration is spending $3 million dollars a day to house migrants at a detention center in Dilley, Texas, where the number of people from Russia and the Middle East crossing the border from Mexico is growing at an alarming rate, DailyMail.com has learned.
Even more alarming, officials are being forced to 'catch and release' undocumented immigrants without properly vetting them, according to an official at the facility.
The South Texas Family Residential Center in Dilley is currently housing about 1,500 migrants at a cost of approximately $2,000 per person per day.
The facility, the largest immigration detention in the US, can hold a maximum of 2,400 detainees and was originally intended to house mainly women and children seeking asylum.
Russian and Middle Eastern migrants are becoming more and more frequent, joining the caravan from Mexico to cross into the United States along with Mexicans and Americans.
But due to the surgeof migrants at the border, officials say it has now become an 'intake and release center for illegal immigrant families' including men, who are being welcomed into the country after 72 hours to await their court dates.
'It's nothing more than catch and release,' a facility official, who wished to remain anonymous, told DailyMail.com.
The South Texas Family Residential Center in Dilley, Texas is now housing 1,500 immigrants at a time for approximately $2,000 per person per day by the federal government, DailyMail.com has learned
The facility, the largest immigration detention in the US, can hold a maximum of 2,400 detainees and is intended to house mainly women and children seeking asylum. Pictured: A mother and son walk outside the center in 2019
Officials at the facility say they have now been forced to take in men due to the recent surge in migration and are seeing more than 150 families arrive daily
'Before President Biden took over we had about 20 families a day arrive at our facility, now we are seeing more than 150 a day, we are overwhelmed. Before we never accepted men at our facility, but now we are.'
The 55-acre detention center is located off I-35 in a small Texas town with a population of 4,000. It is owned by Tennessee-based company, Core Civic, which manages private prisons and detention centers across 19 states, with a reported revenue of $1.98billion in 2019.
The inside source says the facility is also seeing an influx of immigrants from all parts of the world, not just Central and South American countries.
'Previously we'd get immigrants from Mexico, Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador, but in the last few months we've had immigrants from Russia, Iraq, Syria, Vietnam, Romania, Haiti,' the source said.
The South Texas Family Residential Center was built in 2014 and boasted a large gym and even a courtroom used for immigration matters, but those spaces are now being used as intake and sleeping areas.
According to the official, migrant families would typically stay at the center for months at a time while they waited for their asylum cases to go through the court system.
Inside the immigrants have medical, dental and all types of food at their disposal, toys, and even an Xbox for children
The residential center was built in 2014 and boasted a large gym and even a courtroom used for immigration matters, but those spaces are now being used as intake and sleeping areas
But now, due to the influx of people, the maximum time migrants are kept in the center is three days before being released into the United States with an immigration court date in hand.
The process has sparked security concerns at the center, where officials are no longer able to properly screen migrants or verify their identities in their rush to process everyone.
'Because the turnaround time is so short, the immigrants aren't being vetted before they are released,' the source said.
'Our government doesn't really know who they are releasing into our society. When these immigrant families come in from Russia, Syria and Iraq, some of them could be terrorists.
'When these men come into our facility with women and children, we have no proof any of them are actually related. Often they don't have documentation so we have to take their word on their name, age, nationality, etc. They could be anyone, child predators, traffickers, terrorists.'
'The entire immigration system is overwhelmed right now. ICE [Immigration and Customs Enforcement] is just trying to move people through the system as fast as possible,' the source added.
'We have more people than we can handle. It's a crisis situation, everyone is overworked.'
Pictured are general views of the Core Civic South Texas residential facility situated in Dilley, Texas
A source at the facility told DailyMail.com it has become a 'catch and release' operation as they try to move people through the system as fast as possible
The COVID-19 pandemic has also complicated matters now that officials have to administer tests to every arrival.
'When immigrants arrive at the facility they are given a COVD-19 test before they even step off the bus,' the source said.
'If they test positive they are taken to the medical unit. About 10 per cent of them test positive, and aren't released until they have a negative test.'
All girls over the age of 10 are also required to take a pregnancy test. Pregnant girls and women are then sent to the medical unit and hospital for more treatment.
According to the official, the center has seen girls as young as 12 produce a positive pregnancy test.
The immigrants are then are photographed and fingerprinted. ICE officials conduct a background check on each one of them, they can find out if someone has been arrested before in the United States, but it takes days to do a thorough background check.
'Three days isn't enough time to run a background on these immigrants before releasing them into the United States.
'The Border Patrol brings in the immigrants immediately after they are detained. They come in dirty, hungry and often smell. We have them take a shower and provide clean clothing for them. There are medical and dental facilities on premises for the immigrants.
'Most of the immigrants who arrive don't have any paperwork when they arrive. They say they've either lost it or it was stolen from them. So we have to take their word for it when they give us their name, age and nationality. But we have no way of checking them out, unless something comes back from their fingerprint check.
A detention center source told DailyMail.com Russian and Middle Eastern migrants are becoming more frequent as they are joining the caravan from Mexico to cross into the United States
Because the turnaround time in processing is so short, the official said immigrants aren't being properly vetted before they are released
'We've had men and women come in with children and we have to take their word for it they are an actual family, but you know if your heart it's not true, but you have no proof they are lying to you. We have to take their word for it and process them under the information they give us,' continued the insider.
'There was case recently of a women who was in her 70's and she brought along a young three-year-old girl, who she said was her daughter. You know that's not true, but sadly there is nothing that can be done about it. You just hope these kids are not getting sex trafficked.
'I'm sure there are other there are several children that are being smuggled into the United States with an adult that may not be their actual parents.'
After a migrant or migrant family is processed at the border, they are asked if they have any sponsors or relatives in the United States.
If they do, ICE will make attempts to contact them and make arrangements for the family to be released to them.
Often a relative will send bus or plane tickets for migrant to come stay with them. If the person can't afford a ticket, ICE usually foots the bill for the migrant to travel to the relative's house.
This system, however, is actually a fast tracked, water-down version of how migrants are usually processed.
Months ago ICE officials would have vet the sponsoring family or relative to make sure they are legitimate, but now the agency does not even have the time nor resources to be so thorough.
The migrant family is later given an immigration court date for their asylum case before being taken to the bus station or airport.
But because of the overwhelming number of asylum-seekers, the majority of cases are being scheduled for four years from now.
In the meantime, these immigrants will have to work, illegally, many will have more children, further disrupting the immigration process.
Joe Biden faced questions on the border crisis in his first press conference as president on Thursday
The situation has drawn fierce criticism from Republicans who have blamed the Biden administration for the surge
The source says immigrants being released into the United States may also pose health risks since many of them haven't received immunizations for small pox, measles, mumps, and other diseases.
'There have been several incidents where some of the immigrants have never used a toilet. Women would squat down and use the bathroom in a corner of the room or in a trash can.
'There are other incidents where many of the young mothers from Central American have never put on a disposable diaper on their kids. Many of these immigrants lack basic skills to survive in America.'
The insider said the facility she works is in clean and safe, the immigrants have medical, dental and all types of food at their disposal, toys, and even an Xbox for children.
There are 12 beds to room, which house as many as five families and each room has its own bathroom and private telephone line where they can call anyone in the world. The phone lines aren't recorded so the immigrants are free to talk to whoever, wherever and whenever.
Muslim immigrants are provided with prayer rugs and non-pork dishes.
The source said the amenities at this facility are so nice, there have been some immigrants who have refused to leave - a stark contrast to photos of the crowded migrant encampment in Donna, released by Congressman Henry Cuellar over the weekend.
'It's only going to get worse, not any better. What's going on now is going to have lasting negative impact on the United States for years to come. People are being released into the United States without the proper coping skills,' the source added.
On Friday, Congressman Ilhan Omar and other Democratic lawmakers will tour the Carrizo Springs, Texas facility.
Press will not be allowed to join the Democratic lawmakers inside the facility, per guidelines from the Biden administration, but the members of Congress will hold a news conference outside the shelter afterward at 1 pm. EST, her office said.
Rep. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., led a group of progressive Democrats on Monday in demanding that President Biden's administration end contracts between federal immigration enforcement agencies and state and local detention facilities.
So far fellow 'squad' member Rep Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez has commented on whether or not she'll attend the holding facility with Omar.
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