On Thursday, members of Congress conducted oversight at the facility, following a court ruling blocking the Trump administration from requiring some members of Congress to provide seven days' advance notice. Representatives Jimmy Gomez (D-Los Angeles) and Norma Torres (D-Pomona) raised concerns over new reports by attorneys that children and parents have been held nearby inside B-17. After viewing the area, Gomez said the space was filled with chairs but no people, adding that signage indicates children have been there.
"They have a big sign that basically said that the parents should keep the children with them," Gomez said.
The Immigrant Defenders Law Center (ImmDef), a nonprofit immigration legal provider, told Eyewitness News it has tracked some troubling trends over the past several weeks, including an increase in single parents and children brought to B-17.
"And then being sent to Dilley, Texas, pretty quickly after that," noted Sarah Houston, managing attorney of the ImmDef rapid response team. That's the same facility where 5-year-old Liam Conejo Ramos and his father were detained.
Part of the problem with the rapid movement, Houston said, is that people cannot yet be found in an online system, and attorneys don't get the chance to speak with them.
"We can't talk to these individuals before they end up making a decision like signing a voluntary departure order or just saying 'remove me to Mexico,'" said Houston. "That's really concerning, because they're not getting, first of all, the clear picture of what their rights are and what they could pursue."
During the oversight inspection, Gomez carried a sweater and pills for a pregnant woman who ImmDef believed was being held at the facility.
"They said they have no record of her actually even checking, getting checked into the facility," said Gomez.
On Friday morning, Union del Barrio reported that the woman was deported to Nicaragua without due process and was pressured by agents to sign a voluntary deportation.
"She had an open case with immigration and had attended multiple check-ins with immigration prior to being kidnapped and deported," the statement reads. "Why did they deny having her in their custody? This caused tremendous fear and trauma to her husband and her family, who had no idea who had kidnapped her."
ImmDef noted it has seen an increase in people being pressured by immigration authorities to sign voluntary departures.
Federal authorities were notified of Thursday's oversight visit ahead of time, though Gomez stressed that he plans more unannounced visits.
"You're always wondering, are they shifting people around so that there's no one there when we show up? That is always a concern," he said.
The Department of Homeland Security has not responded to Eyewitness News' questions regarding B-17.
ImmDef Staff Attorney Ming Tanigawa-Lau issued the following statement about the pregnant woman who was sent to Nicaragua:
"Leonela's case marks a devastating new low for ICE and their unlawful enforcement patterns. ICE told our legal team she was never processed, yet two days later, she was suddenly in Nicaragua, after she was likely pressured into signing deportation papers she did not want and could not meaningfully consent to without access to an attorney. Leonela is eight months pregnant, entitled under federal law and ICE's own detention standards to heightened medical care, legal access, and protection from coercion. These rapid removals, carried out without transparency or proper documentation, leave families frantically searching for loved ones while the government denies having them in custody. This is not a procedural error, this is the circumvention of due process for the sake of a cruel deportation agenda. That they did this while a lawyer and two members of Congress were physically searching for her is a level of defiance toward both the law and congressional oversight that should shock the conscience."