Activists and detainees are expressing concern as an October spike in COVID-19 cases at the Aurora Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Detention Facility has continued into November.

The Aurora Detention Center, run by GEO Group, had 31 active cases and 120 total cases among detainees Tuesday, according to ICE data. Total cases include detainees who have recovered or are no longer in ICE custody.

According to the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment, the facility has had an active COVID-19 outbreak since the end of May.

Mauricio Perez Espinosa said that after staying home and taking the necessary precautions for months, he contracted COVID-19 within a month of arriving at the detention center.

In a video testimony to the Colorado People’s Alliance last week, Perez Espinosa said he was quarantined for two weeks when he arrived, moved to another pod for less than two weeks, then sent to the south building.

After two days in the south building, Perez Espinosa began experiencing COVID-19 symptoms. Within a week, his entire 30-person pod had symptoms.

Eventually, a 19-year-old pod member tested positive for COVID-19. Perez Espinosa said by the next week, they had all tested positive.

“The best they ever did was wish us good luck,” Perez Espinosa said. “The most we were offered was aspirin and that’s about it.”

A detainee told Perez Espinosa that their pod in the south building had previously been used as a quarantine unit for individuals infected with COVID-19. Perez Espinosa said the pod had visibly not been cleaned when they arrived.

Perez Espinosa said he and his pod members were concerned for their lives.

“We are seeing the fruition of the facilities’ negligence and incompetence in managing the COVID-19 pandemic within their facility,” said Danielle Loeb, primary care physician.

Loeb said early in the pandemic, she offered the Aurora ICE facility masks for the detainees, but they refused.

“GEO has put the lives of all of those detained in the Aurora facility and all of those who work there in jeopardy with their inexcusable safety practices,” Loeb said. 

Since February, ICE has reported 7,055 COVID-19 cases among its 17,458 detainee population. Of those cases, 409 are active and 8 resulted in death.

ICE has been criticized for its reporting as the agency only tracks deaths that take place within its custody, excluding COVID-19 deaths that happen once the detainee is released or deported.

The Aurora Detention Center has no reported COVID-19 deaths, according to ICE.

Colorado People’s Alliance (COPA) said it has been pushing for oversight increase at the Aurora Detention Facility for years.

“The most recent COVID outbreak at the GEO ICE detention facility is another grim reminder of the danger posed both by the virus and our cruel and inhumane immigration system,” said Juan Marcano, Aurora city council member and member of COPA.

“We must put humanity above the profit of private detention facilities.”

COPA said it has received numerous reports about medical neglect within the Aurora Detention Facility.

In October, COPA demanded the release of as many detainees as possible to ensure proper medical care for the sick.

In June, ICE reported it had released at least 700 people nationally that were determined to be medically vulnerable to COVID-19. Since July, the overall detainee population of ICE detention centers has decreased by over 4,000, according to ICE data.

“We are confident that our officers can properly and safely carry out operations,” ICE said in a September statement.

“In our day-to-day operations, the focus is, as it has always been, on public safety threats and those subject to mandatory detention while keeping in mind the safety and well-being of all involved.”

On its website, ICE said it has taken substantial action to combat COVID-19.

Precautions include personal protective equipment for front-line operators, remote work for agency personnel, temperature checks before detainees are released and isolation among detainees when needed.

Following national criticism, ICE began offering voluntary COVID-19 tests in June to all people held at detention facilities in Aurora and Tacoma, Washington. It later expanded testing to other locations.