OSHA cites 3 companies after death of worker building ICE detention camp

Federal regulators have cited three contractors for safety violations connected to the death of a worker helping build a major immigration detention center in Texas last year. The citations, detailed in a report released Monday by watchdog group Public Citizen, highlight ongoing concerns about the troubled U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement facility.

Hector Gonzalez, 38, was crushed by falling materials in a construction accident on July 21, 2025, as contractors rushed to complete Camp East Montana in El Paso. The U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) investigation found serious violations among contractors working at the site.

The accident occurred just days after the Army awarded a contract worth up to $1.3 billion to Acquisition Logistics to build and operate the facility at Fort Bliss, near the U.S.-Mexico border. The detention center opened the following month and quickly became ICE’s largest facility for immigrants awaiting or challenging deportation, at times housing more than 3,000 people.

Since its opening, Camp East Montana has faced a series of troubling issues. These include allegations of inhumane conditions, disease outbreaks, and the deaths of three detainees in December and January. A February inspection by ICE’s Office of Detention Oversight uncovered dozens of violations of national detention standards.

“The Trump administration is doling out billions of dollars in taxpayer funds on contracts that have led to the deaths of four people in a six-month period. And things are not likely to improve,” said Public Citizen researcher Douglas Pasternak, who authored the report released Monday.

Last month, ICE replaced Acquisition Logistics as the prime contractor, awarding a no-bid contract to Amentum Services. The Virginia-based company initially awarded the billion-dollar contract had no prior experience operating detention facilities.

OSHA’s investigation into Gonzalez’s death found safety rule violations by three subcontractors involved in building the camp: Base International, JMJ Production Services, and Fulfillment Personnel Services. While OSHA declined to cite the primary contractor Acquisition Logistics, it pursued penalties against these subcontractors for violations related to powered industrial truck safety standards.

Base International, which employed Gonzalez, was cited for exposing employees to “struck-by hazards” from unstable, elevated loads of stacked composite beams on a forklift during supply unloading. The other two companies received citations for the same violation, plus an additional citation for failing to ensure employees were properly certified to operate powered industrial trucks on the worksite.

JMJ Production Services and Fulfillment Personnel Services each agreed to settlements with OSHA in February, paying reduced fines of $15,000. However, Base International is contesting its citation, which carries a proposed penalty of $11,585. If no settlement is reached, an administrative law judge will consider the appeal at a hearing.

“Base International is appealing the ruling, because there was no wrongdoing by the company,” said company spokesperson Tom McNicholas.

The Public Citizen report adds another dimension to the controversy by highlighting political connections. Base International is owned by Florida businessman Nathan Albers, who the report describes as a donor to President Donald Trump and other Republican politicians and groups. Public Citizen characterized Albers as “a close associate of the Trump family” who donated more than $150,000 to Republican campaigns in 2025.

The report also noted that Albers’ wife had co-chaired a pet fundraiser at Mar-A-Lago with Trump’s daughter-in-law, Lara Trump, last month. Albers is also CEO of Disaster Management Group, another federal contractor that shares the same Jupiter, Florida address as Base International.

When contacted for comment, Juan Munoz, founder and president of Austin-based JMJ Production Services, told reporters, “I wish I could talk about that but you’d have to talk to my attorneys.” Fulfillment Personnel Services, based in Mobile, Alabama, did not respond to requests for comment.

The ongoing safety violations and operational problems at the detention facility raise significant questions about contractor oversight and the conditions faced by both workers and detainees at immigration facilities along the southern border.