A private company that manages Immigration and Customs Enforcement facilities and offices nationwide released new video that shows the moments after a self-described antifa supporter set ablaze a vehicle outside the agency’s Tacoma, Washington, detention facility where more than 1,000 illegal immigrants were being held.
The GEO Group shared with the Washington Examiner a two-minute video that shows a car on fire outside the facility shortly after the attacker, Vashon Island resident Willem Van Spronsen, torched it outside the Northwest Detention Center July 13.
In the video, the car explodes and then Van Spronsen opened fire with an AR-15 on the building and hurled Molotov cocktails. He also attempted to blow up a propane tank on site before he was killed after pointing his rifle at police and ignoring commands.
Former acting ICE Director Tom Homan said Thursday the incident could have killed more than 1,300 people in custody as well as the 100 ICE personnel on site had it not been for local Tacoma law enforcement’s quick response.
GEO spokesman Pablo Paez said in July the incident was a result of the “factually inaccurate portrayal of our facilities.”
“Contrary to the images of other facilities on the news, our facilities have never been overcrowded, nor have they ever housed unaccompanied minors,” said Paez. “The GEO Group’s facilities, including the processing center in Tacoma, offer modern amenities with air conditioning, a bed for every individual, recreational activities, 24/7 medical care and access to legal services on the premises as we carry out our mission to provide the safest, most humane care possible.”
