Kilmar Abrego Garcia, a migrant previously wrongfully deported to El Salvador, is again in ICE custody following a Baltimore check-in. Despite recently reuniting with his family after being released on parole, the US government now intends to deport him to Uganda. Abrego faces human smuggling charges and his lawyers claim the detention is retaliation for speaking out against his treatment.
Kilmar Abrego Garcia, a 30-year-old migrant whose wrongful deportation to El Salvador earlier this year drew national attention, is once again in the custody of US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), as per a report. His case has now taken a new, alarming turn, with the US government proposing to deport him to Uganda, according to a Reuters report.
Abrego, who became a symbol of the Trump administration’s hardline immigration policies, was detained on Monday morning during what was supposed to be a routine ICE check-in in Baltimore, as per a NBC report. The check-in was part of the conditions of his release from federal custody last Friday on parole, following five months behind bars, including time in a mega-prison in El Salvador, according to the report.
ALSO READ: Smuggling case drama: US seeks to deport Kilmar Abrego Garcia after plea refusal
But instead of returning home with his family after the interview at 8 a.m. EDT on Monday, Abrego was taken into custody again, as per Reuters.
Just three days earlier, Abrego had walked out of a Tennessee facility and reunited with his family in Maryland after 160 days of separation, as reported by CNBC. His release came after being mistakenly deported to El Salvador in March, a move that violated a 2019 court order, according to the NBC report. He was returned to the US in June and faced federal human smuggling charges in Tennessee, which he has pleaded not guilty, as per the report.
ALSO READ: $630 trillion shake-up? Harvard’s Harry Dent predicts Bitcoin’s big disruption
On Monday morning, Abrego arrived at the ICE field office in downtown Baltimore, surrounded by family, supporters, and faith leaders and he addressed the crowd briefly before entering the building, according to the NBC report.
He said, “My name is Kilmar Abrego Garcia, and I want you to remember this, remember that I am free and I was able to be reunited with my family,” adding, “This was a miracle. Thank you to God and thank you to the community. I want to thank each and every one of you who marched, lift your voices, never stop praying and continue to fight in my name,” as quoted by NBC.
Meanwhile, Abrego’s attorneys said that they expected he would be taken into ICE custody during the check-in as the Trump administration had already announced over the weekend its intenton to deport him to Uganda, as reported by NBC.
One of his attorneys, Simon Sandoval-Moshenberg, highlighted that, “There was no need to take him into ICE detention. … The only reason they took him into detention was to punish him for using his constitutional right to speak up and fight proceedings,” as quoted in the report.
Sandoval-Moshenberg shared that when lawyers had asked ICE officers why Abrego was taken into custody, the ICE officers did not give an answer and also did not give information about where he will be taken to, according to NBC.
Who is Kilmar Abrego Garcia?
He’s a 30-year-old migrant who was wrongfully deported to El Salvador earlier this year, and might now be deported to Uganda, as per a Reuters report.
Is he facing charges in the US?
Yes, he faces federal human smuggling charges in Tennessee, to which he has pleaded not guilty, as per a NBC report.
