The U.S. government has purchased a large warehouse in Surprise, Arizona, for $70 million, according to a recorded property deed, as part of a broader effort by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement to acquire warehouse sites that could be converted into immigration detention facilities.

The property was sold by RG Surprise AZ LLC to the United States of America on Jan. 23, 2026, the deed shows. The acquiring agency is listed as the Department of Homeland Security, and the transaction was handled by ICE’s Facilities Management Division. The parcel is identified as Lot 32 of the Surprise Pointe development in Maricopa County.

The deed states the federal government paid $70,035,000 in cash and that the transaction is exempt from Arizona recording fees under state law provisions for federal acquisitions. The document does not specify how the building will be used.

Bloomberg News reported that the Trump administration has begun purchasing large warehouse properties across the country to convert them into immigration detention centers. The report said the Surprise site was bought a week after a similar $102 million purchase near Hagerstown, Maryland, and that ICE plans to use as many as 23 warehouse sites nationwide for detention operations.

According to Bloomberg, the buildings are empty shells that would still need to be outfitted with beds, bathrooms, dining areas and security infrastructure before they could be used to hold detainees. The proposed sites range from 500 to 9,500 beds, and some would be among the largest detention centers in the country if completed as planned.