Andrew and Tristan Tate are being held in a Florida detention center described by inmates as a "hellish" environment with pervasive filth and unsanitary conditions as they await extradition to the United Kingdom to face numerous charges, including rape and human trafficking. The brothers have been housed at the Federal Detention Center (FDC) in Miami since their arrest on July 18.
Detainees at the facility have reported conditions to family members, including a pervasive odor of urine and feces, with toilets often left unflushed. One detainee, Marlon Cervelo Trujillo, described the situation in a recorded call to his wife, stating, "We’re either going to kill ourselves, or we’re going to die from some illness. Because [the guards] don’t care about anything in there." Reports also indicate that new arrivals have been greeted with the phrase "welcome to hell" before being placed in holding cells.
A Human Rights Watch report has previously documented incidents of "extreme overcrowding, unsanitary conditions and abusive treatment" at FDC Miami, citing issues such as broken toilets, verbal harassment, and humiliating searches.
The Tate brothers are being held in a separate section of the facility known as the special housing unit. Despite this separation, they have also voiced complaints about their living conditions. In a note shared by their lawyer, Tristan Tate claimed that both he and his brother had lost significant weight, stating, "I am hungry." The brothers have reportedly subsisted on ramen noodles and snacks purchased from the jailhouse commissary, according to Bureau of Prisons receipts viewed by The Telegraph. Their lawyers have filed complaints detailing alleged harsh conditions, including denial of basic grooming products and instances of pepper spray use by officers that affected other detainees in adjacent cells.
The Bureau of Prisons (BOP) issued a statement asserting that it "takes seriously our duty to protect all individuals entrusted to our custody, as well as maintain the safety of correctional employees and the community." In a filing responding to the Tates' complaints, the BOP acknowledged that the detention center is "not a Marriott" but maintained that the conditions of confinement are "reasonable, constitutional and within BOP’s discretion."