In a post on his platform Truth Social, Trump states that he has instructed authorities to reopen a "significantly expanded and rebuilt" Alcatraz.
"When we were a more serious country, back in the day, we didn't hesitate to lock up the most dangerous criminals and keep them far away from those they could harm. That's how it should be," he writes.
The prison, located on an island off San Francisco in California, was closed in 1963 and is now operated as a tourist destination. Alcatraz has become somewhat of a cultural phenomenon and has been the subject of numerous films.
It was considered impossible to escape from due to its inaccessible location in the middle of the sea, surrounded by strong ocean currents, and had housed some of the USA's most notorious criminals such as Al Capone and George "Machine Gun" Kelly. During the 29 years that Alcatraz was in operation as a prison, 36 prisoners attempted to flee in 14 separate incidents, according to the FBI. Almost all were recaptured or died during the escape.
The closure of Alcatraz was due, among other things, to high costs for maintaining and operating the prison, since everything from fuel to food had to be transported there by boat.
