Detention center captain fired after ties to neo-Nazi group alleged
A high-ranking employee of the Nevada Southern Detention Center in Pahrump is no longer employed at the facility.
CoreCivic Director of Public Affairs Amanda Gilchrist said in an email Travis Frey, 31, a captain at the center, was allegedly active on a neo-Nazi website, expressing interest in starting a white supremacist group. CoreCivic owns and manages the Pahrump facility.
“CoreCivic cares deeply about our employees, communities and the individuals in our care, and we do not tolerate discrimination of any kind,” Gilchrist said in an email. “We take allegations like these very seriously and have thoroughly investigated the matter. After carefully considering the findings of the investigation, the company has taken the appropriate steps to protect the integrity of our workplace and ensure our values are not compromised. Mr. Frey is no longer employed by CoreCivic.”
The white supremacist group revelation came to light after Vice News reported the allegations, following a lengthy investigation by the news outlet.
Vice News is described as an outlet which produces daily documentary essays through its website and the YouTube channel, where it promotes itself on coverage of “under-reported stories.”
The Nevada Southern Detention Center, located at 2190 East Mesquite in Pahrump, is a privately-owned facility that contracts with Immigration and Customs Enforcement, also known as “ICE.”
Last month, Senators Catherine Cortez Masto and Jacky Rosen, both Democrats, sent a letter to the Department of Homeland Security, (DHS) Office of the Inspector General, urging the agency to probe the detention center, after learning of the Vice News report.
The incident, according to a joint release from Masto and Rosen, was the latest in a series of events raising concerns about the safety of both detainees and employees at the facility.
“It is imperative that any private company contracted with the federal government to operate a detention facility be held to the highest standards of care and management,” the senators wrote. “It is also critical that transparency and oversight not be hindered because the facility is operated by a private entity through a federal contract. The federal government has an obligation to ensure that individuals in its care, whether in a federally- or privately-operated facility, are subject to safe and healthy environments.”
Though Frey is no longer with the prison, Cortez Masto is still calling for an investigation into the facility, “based on the concerns identified in her letter with Senator Rosen related to a number of recent concerning incidents at the facility,” said Ryan King, communications director for Cortez Masto, in an email.
“Those concerns include compliance with federally-required standards for health and safety, hiring policies and procedures and the processes by which ICE and DHS (Department of Homeland Security) ensure that CoreCivic, the federal contractor that oversees the facility, complies with its obligations under its federal contract,” King said in the email.
Contact reporter Selwyn Harris at sharris@pvtimes.com. On Twitter: @pvtimes
Pahrump Valley Times Interim Editor Jeffrey Meehan contributed to this story.
