The Trump administration said a Salvadoran man who was mistakenly deported and then brought back to the US on criminal charges will "never go free" on American soil, even though a judge ordered his release. Kilmar Ábrego García was deported in March as part of an immigration crackdown. Government officials said he was removed in error, but they were unable to bring him back. Earlier this month, he was sent to the state of Tennessee, where the justice department charged him with human smuggling. The judge overseeing the case said on Sunday that Mr Ábrego García should be released from custody while he awaits trial. But she noted immigration officials would still have the power to detain him. "Kilmar Abrego Garcia is a dangerous criminal illegal alien," Tricia McLaughlin, a spokesperson for the Department of Homeland Security, said in a social media post on Monday. "We have said it for months and it remains true to this day: he will never go free on American soil." The department oversees immigration enforcement. Judge Barbara Holmes said in an opinion on Sunday that "the government failed to prove" that Mr Ábrego García endangered any minor victim, was a flight risk or might attempt to obstruct justice. She also wrote that once the Justice Department released him, immigration officials would probably take Mr Ábrego García into custody as they work to remove him from the country. In a federal indictment filed in early June, the government accused Mr Ábrego García of participating in a trafficking conspiracy over several years to move undocumented migrants from Texas to other parts of the country. The charges, which date back to 2016, allege he transported undocumented individuals between Texas and Maryland and other states more than 100 times. He has pleaded not guilty. The Trump administration has also accused him of being a member of the MS-13 gang, though Mr Ábrego García and his lawyers have strongly denied that. Mr Ábrego García was initially deported on 15 March amid an immigration crackdown by the Trump administration, after it invoked theAlien Enemies Act, a wartime law that allows presidents to detain or deport the natives and citizens of an enemy country. He was taken to the Cecot mega-prison in El Salvador, known for its brutal conditions. While government lawyers initially said he was taken there as a result of an "administrative error", the Trump administration would not bring him back. The US Supreme Court ordered the government to "facilitate" his return to his home in the state of Maryland, and a legal battle began over what the court required. Mr Ábrego García entered the US illegally as a teenager from El Salvador. In 2019, he was arrested with three other men in Maryland and detained by federal immigration authorities. An immigration judge granted him protection from deportation on the grounds that he might be at risk of persecution from local gangs in his home country.
US says Kilmar Ábrego García will 'never go free' after judge orders his release
TruthLens AI Suggested Headline:
"US Government Asserts Kilmar Ábrego García Will Remain Detained Following Judge's Release Order"
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TruthLens AI Summary
Kilmar Ábrego García, a Salvadoran man, has become a focal point in a complex legal and immigration battle after being mistakenly deported and subsequently charged with human smuggling. The Trump administration has asserted that he will "never go free" in the United States, despite a judge's recent order for his release while awaiting trial. Mr. Ábrego García was deported in March as part of a broader immigration crackdown, and officials later admitted that his removal was an error. After being returned to the U.S. and charged in Tennessee, a judge determined that the government had not sufficiently demonstrated that he posed a danger to minors, was a flight risk, or would obstruct justice. This ruling, however, allows for the possibility of his detention by immigration officials once the Justice Department releases him, indicating that his legal troubles are far from over.
The charges against Mr. Ábrego García include participation in a trafficking conspiracy that allegedly spanned several years, during which he transported undocumented migrants across state lines. He has pleaded not guilty to these accusations, which date back to 2016, and the government has also claimed he is linked to the MS-13 gang—a charge that he and his legal team vehemently deny. His initial deportation occurred under the Alien Enemies Act, a wartime law invoked by the Trump administration, and he was sent to a notorious prison in El Salvador known for its harsh conditions. Following a Supreme Court ruling that mandated the facilitation of his return to Maryland, a legal dispute has ensued regarding the implications of the court's decision. While Mr. Ábrego García's legal status remains precarious, the government's commitment to preventing his release signals ongoing tensions surrounding immigration enforcement and criminal justice in the U.S.
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