Immigrants held at a California detention center have alleged they were sexually harassed by a guard and that their complaints went unanswered while the officer in question was transferred to another facility and promoted, according to a report.
The official, named only as âLt Quinâ by The Los Angeles Times, was contracted to work as an administrative manager at the Golden State Annex in McFarland, California, by a private prison firm, Floridaâs GEO Group, at the time the abuse is alleged to have taken place.
Quin was the subject of three complaints from the same detainee, according to the Times, which were filed under the Federal Tort Claims Act, to a watchdog agency and with the Department of Homeland Security, and which accused him of sexual assault, harassment and coercion. The complainant also alleged that other staff knew about the misconduct and joked about it.
The inmate, a 28-year-old man, alleges that, beginning in May 2023, Quin began routinely summoning him from his dorm to the lieutenantâs office late at night, with no security cameras present, to warn him he had been given a citation or complained about by one of the other guards, before rubbing his genitals and making sexual comments.
While the complainant said he initially refused Quinâs alleged advances, which, he said, included promises to help him with his immigration case and threats of calling a âcode blackâ to summon other officers on the assumption their colleague had been attacked, he ultimately gave in to the pressure campaign and allowed Quin to touch his genitals and perform oral sex on him.
He said he was rewarded thereafter with contraband gifts from the officer, including a phone and a water bottle filled with alcohol. The latter exchange was witnessed by another guard, reportedly leading to Quinâs brief suspension, and a pause to their late-night interaction.
âI feel dirty,â the detainee said in a recorded interview. âI feel ashamed of myself, you know? I feel like my dignity was just nowhere.â
An earlier complaint filed on behalf of the same detainee by the Asian Law Caucus alleges that other staff at the California facility had made suggestive remarks towards him, hinting that they knew about Quinâs alleged abuse.
That complaint also contains allegations of abuse towards five other detainees, one of whom is transgender. According to the Times, a gay couple from Colombia also reported being abused by Quin at the facility in April 2024, roughly the same time as the other incidents cited.
The alleged victim also filed a third complaint with another oversight body, the Office of the Immigration Detention Ombudsman. To his knowledge, no investigation was initiated, the Times reported.
The accused was subsequently transferred to a higher-ranking post, as chief of security, at the Alexandria Staging Facility in Louisiana, according to the Times, while the alleged victim was transferred to the Mesa Verde ICE processing Center in Bakersfield, California, in October 2024, before being deported last month.
The outlet reports they succeeded in contacting Quin by phone, only for him to initially refuse to speak to them and then hang up when a reporter attempted to read the accusations to him in pursuit of a response.
The Independent has reached out to DHS, ICE and the GEO Group for comment.
Assistant Homeland Security Secretary Tricia McLaughlin said in a statement that any allegations of misconduct by ICE employees or government contractors are treated seriously and investigated thoroughly.
âThese complaints were filed in 2024 â well before current DHS leadership and the necessary reforms they implemented,â she said.
âThe investigation into this matter has concluded, and ICE â through its own investigation reviewed by [the DHS office for Civil Rights and Civil Liberties] â could not substantiate any complaint of sexual assault or rape.
âAll legally required functions of CRCL continue to be performed, but in an efficient and cost-effective manner and without hindering the departmentâs mission of securing the homeland.â
