The U.S. government used $219,877 of our taxpayer dollars to detain and deport Saidu Sow.
Saidu Sow was held in immigration jail for approximately 1,035 days. The average cost of detention per day is $129.64, according to ICE. This figure includes the jail contract and ICE personnel expenses.
The federal government spent $134,177 to detain Saidu in so-called “civil” immigration jail.
Before his deportation, Saidu was flown around the U.S. on charter flights from Ohio to Louisiana, and from Louisiana to Florida, Virginia, and two other states. Then, he flew to Arizona. According to NBC News and ICE, charter flights cost about $7,800 per flight hour. If Saidu spent fifteen hours on charter flights around the US, that would equal $117,000. We estimate an average of ten people on these interior charter flights.
The federal government spent $11,700 on internal transportation flights to set up Saidu’s deportation.
In Arizona, Saidu was deported on another charter flight with three other people (final number to be confirmed). A charter flight to Mauritania costs $148,000 one way, according to NBC’s analysis of ICE figures. The flight would need to return to the U.S. with the ICE agents. The total roundtrip would be at least $296,000, but likely more since the plane will have made stops in other countries as well.