Florida, 3 July

In a startling revelation during a Florida press event, US Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem claimed a migrant detainee tried to eat himself mid-air on a deportation flight. Standing beside former President Donald Trump and Governor Ron DeSantis, Noem said she was told of the bizarre incident by US Marshals working with ICE. While she offered no details about the time or location, she emphasized that the episode left federal officers visibly shaken.

Noem framed the alleged incident as symbolic of the threats she believes are seeping into the country under former President Biden’s border policies. ““These are the kind of deranged individuals that are on our streets in America that we’re trying to target and get out of our country because they are so deranged they don’t belong here…,” she warned, using the claim to advocate for tighter immigration controls.

The event also served as the launchpad for a controversial new migrant detention center dubbed “Alligator Alcatraz.” Tucked away in the Florida Everglades on a remote training airstrip, the facility is part of an aggressive immigration crackdown led by DeSantis and backed by Trump. With 500 to 1,000 beds ready in days, the center is expected to grow to accommodate up to 5,000 detainees by July.

Noem urged other states to replicate Florida’s hardline approach, calling the Everglades facility a national model for immigration enforcement.