U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) is considering the state’s proposed prison site in Franklin County for a potential immigration detention center, according to local law enforcement officials.
On Monday, three ICE agents visited the 815-acre property along Arkansas 215 near Mill Creek Mountain, about seven miles north of Charleston, where they met with Chief Deputy Jon Little of the Franklin County Sheriff’s Office.
“They told Little, ‘Yeah, we’re looking at having an ICE facility, a detention center, here,’” Franklin County Sheriff Johnny Crocker told the River Valley Democrat-Gazette Thursday morning.
The agents reportedly said the site could be operational quickly, beginning with a temporary emergency facility before transitioning to permanent structures if the plan moved forward.
While Chief Deputy Little was speaking with the ICE agents, Joe Profiri, a senior adviser to Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders and former Arkansas Department of Corrections secretary, arrived at the location.
Profiri has drawn criticism from opponents of the proposed 3,000-bed state prison after skipping a Sept. 9 legislative hearing addressing formal complaints about the Franklin County site.
Crocker said Profiri seemed unhappy that Little was present but did not engage with him beyond a handshake.
Sheriff Crocker expressed frustration about what he described as the “sneakiness” of the proposal, emphasizing the lack of infrastructure and resources needed to support such a facility in the rural county.
“I really don’t appreciate them bringing their problems here,” Crocker said, citing both state and federal crime issues. “We don’t have the workforce, we don’t have the facility. There’s no way we can do this.”
Crocker also noted the area’s appeal to retirees seeking a quiet, rural lifestyle and voiced concerns about the possibility of gang-affiliated detainees, such as members of MS-13, being housed nearby.
