Private prison firm profits as ICE expands use of costly GPS ankle monitors
B.I. Incorporated, a GEO Group subsidiary, is earning billions from ICE's growing reliance on GPS ankle monitors instead of a cheaper smartphone app.
ICE has turned to GPS ankle monitors to supervise immigrants awaiting legal hearings, a shift that is boosting profits for B.I. Incorporated, a unit of the GEO Group. The company secured a contract in September 2025 worth $1.02 billion, with $228.5 million already spent.
GEO Group chairman George Zoley reported that monitored individuals jumped from 17,000 in 2025 to 54,000 this year, and he expects further growth, especially among Haitians who lost Temporary Protected Status. A Haitian immigrant, Pierre Damas Bel, claimed the device caused humiliation before his death, which his family links to the monitor. A class-action suit alleges the monitors cause pain, swelling, scarring, and employment discrimination. Senior attorney Sarah Decker criticized the practice as a taxpayer-driven profit scheme for private-prison companies, while DHS argues the technology simply enhances supervision.
Why it matters
The story shows how private-prison profits are tied to immigration enforcement policies affecting vulnerable migrants.
In this story
