Trump Administration Plans To Deport Kilmar Abrego Garcia Again — but Not to El Salvador

The Trump administration says it again plans to deport a Salvadoran national, Kilmar Abrego Garcia — but not back to El Salvador.Mistakenly deported — and now returned — Mr. Abrego was first arrested in Maryland in March and quickly deported to El Salvador. He has been held in Tennessee on federal charges since he was flown back to the United States under court order.A federal prosecutor told a judge in Maryland on Thursday that Mr. Abrego would be deported again, but this time to a “third country.” The country he was referring to was not disclosed.A Department of Justice attorney, Jonathan Guynn, told U.S. District Judge Paula Xinis about the government’s plans during a hastily scheduled conference call. The call also involved Mr. Abrego’s attorneys, who fear the government is trying to quickly deport him again while he is released on bail pending trial.U.S. Magistrate Judge Barbara Homes previously ruled Mr. Abrego should be released while awaiting trial, but she delayed the release on Wednesday over concerns that immigration officials would simply deport him.Mr. Abrego’s lawyers are asking the judge to order the government to return him to Maryland and prevent his deportation before his trial.Mr. Guynn said there are “no imminent plans” to deport Mr. Abrego and declined to elaborate on any possible timeline for such a deportation. He added that the administration would comply with orders related to him, according to the Associated Press.Judge Xinis scheduled a hearing on the matter for July 7.Mr. Abrego was arrested near his home in Maryland in March on immigration charges. He initially came to the United States illegally in 2011 and had previously been granted legal status, and has lived here with his native-born wife and children for more than a decade.In what was described as an “administrative error,” the Trump administration sent him to El Salvador and he was placed in that country’s notorious maximum security prison, known as CECOT.The Supreme Court issued a unanimous emergency order in April directing the Trump administration to facilitate Mr. Abrego’s return. It took weeks for his return and he was subsequently charged in Tennessee with two counts of human trafficking.The justice department says the charges are related to a years-long operation that found criminals drove “thousands” of undocumented migrants to parts of the United States from Texas.A grand jury indictment that was handed up in May and unsealed this month accuses Mr. Abrego of making more than 100 trips to smuggle people, including members of MS-13, as well as firearms and drugs charges.

Trump Administration Plans To Deport Kilmar Abrego Garcia Again — but Not to El Salvador

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