By the time Moises Benitez Diaz made it back to Raleigh, he had missed the birth of his daughter, burned through thousands of dollars in legal and medical bills, and was convinced that a three-month stay in a Georgia immigration facility had nearly killed him.
Benitez Diaz, who owns a small construction business in Raleigh, was picked up on Nov. 18, 2025, at a Cary job site and taken to an ICE processing center in Folkston, Georgia. He says the experience was so grim that at one point he feared he would not make it home alive. He spent roughly three months in custody before a judge set an $8,500 bond that led to his release in late February. While he sat in detention, his family tried to keep both the household and the business afloat without his paycheck.
Inside the facility, Benitez Diaz described overcrowded and unsanitary conditions. He told reporters that people slept on the floor, toilets were clogged, and food sometimes came with worms. He says he vomited so often that he briefly choked and that guards did not respond right away. According to his account, when he called for help, a guard replied, “OK, well, I’ll be there in a minute,” then never showed up, as reported by The News & Observer.
Facility Conditions In Folkston
The D. Ray James Processing Center in Folkston is owned and operated by the private prison contractor GEO Group. The complex was activated in 2025 to expand ICE processing capacity. In its own materials, The GEO Group highlights 24/7 medical access and what it describes as higher-than-typical healthcare staffing…