Attorneys released a video showing a bottle of water from the Adelanto ICE detention center that appears to contain small, worm-like organisms. Detainee Carlitos Ricardo Parias says the sample came from jugs distributed to residents and preserved it as evidence. DHS says Adelanto uses city water and independent tests met FDA standards, while advocates report longstanding complaints about murky, foul-tasting water. The footage has intensified scrutiny over whether the facility is complying with a judge's order to provide 24-hour access to clean drinking water.
Video From Adelanto ICE Detention Shows Bottle of Water Containing Worm-Like Organisms, Attorneys Say
The Adelanto Ice detention facility in California, which is run by the private prison company Geo Group.Photograph: Patrick T Fallon/AFP/Getty Images
Attorneys for a man detained at the Adelanto Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) facility in California have released a short, grainy video that appears to show a plastic bottle of drinking water containing small, worm-like organisms.
Video, Claims and Response
The footage was recorded during a video call with Carlitos Ricardo Parias, a Los Angeles resident who has been held at Adelanto for several months. Parias told his lawyers the water came from jugs distributed by staff to residents; he said he poured the sample into a bottle to preserve it as evidence and showed it to a relative on a video call. In a statement translated by his attorney, Parias described the objects as "worms" or "larvae."
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) did not answer repeated questions about the clip. A DHS spokesperson said the facility receives its water from the city of Adelanto and provides "the same water used by residents and businesses in the area." Geo Group, the private company that operates the facility under contract, did not respond to inquiries.
Context: Court Order and Class-Action Lawsuit
The footage surfaced weeks after a federal judge ordered ICE to ensure people detained at Adelanto have "24-hour access to clean, potable drinking water." That order followed a class-action lawsuit alleging dangerous conditions at the center, including inadequate food, impure drinking water and insufficient medical care.
Lawyers for the government said in a recent filing that drinking water at the facility had been sampled and tested at multiple distribution points by an independent third party and was found to meet Food and Drug Administration (FDA) standards. Advocates and attorneys representing detained individuals say detainees have long complained about murky, foul-tasting water and irregular access.
Reactions
Margaret Hellerstein, one of Parias's attorneys, called the clip "horrifying" and said it must be treated as evidence. Public interest lawyers involved in the class action confirmed they had seen the footage but said they had not yet received direct reports from other detainees describing the same contaminant shown in the video. Advocates say the video raises serious questions about compliance with the court's order.
Parias, who posts on TikTok as Richard LA, previously received national attention after being shot by an ICE agent in October; he was charged with assault, a charge later dismissed by a federal judge, and is now in removal proceedings.
Note on Verification: The exact nature of the organisms shown in the clip has not been independently verified and the water's precise source within the facility remains unclear. Independent testing cited by DHS reportedly met FDA standards, but the footage has renewed scrutiny and calls for further investigation.
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