The whistleblower revealed previously unknown behavior, including the use of a restraint chair on a detainee.
WASHINGTON — Days after WUSA9's exclusive interview with a whistleblower who worked inside the Baltimore ICE detention facility, the explosive allegations are fueling efforts to force changes — both on Capitol Hill and in federal court.
Maryland Sen. Chris Van Hollen said the former worker's account validated his worst fears after a viral video showing severe overcrowding at the facility sparked national outrage in January.
"Well, the story we heard was horrifying," Van Hollen told WUSA9.
The former security guard, whose identity WUSA9 disguised because he signed a non-disclosure agreement, described conditions even worse than what appeared in the viral video.
"I saw people laying in feces. People throwing up, people laying in urine," the worker said, comparing scenes inside to "pictures that I saw in elementary school of how they brought the slaves from Africa."
The worker provided internal head count sheets from December showing as many as 56 detainees packed into the cell shown in the viral video — more than the worker counted in the footage itself — and as many as 50 detainees in an even smaller cell.
"This whistleblower has obviously shown that it is as horrible as it looked on the video," Van Hollen said.
Van Hollen is among a group of Democrats threatening to block Department of Homeland Security funding unless ICE agrees to major...
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