President Trump had a testy exchange with ABC News’s Terry Moran over whether Kilmar Abrego Garcia has “MS-13” tattooed on his knuckles or a picture that makes it appear to be the case was photoshopped. 

Last week, Mr. Trump shared a picture on Truth Social of Mr. Abrego’s tattoos on his hand. The picture had a caption that read, “Kilmar Abrego Garcia MS-13 Tattoo.” The tattoos include a variety of symbols, including a marijuana leaf, a smiley face, a cross, and a skull. Above each of the symbols, “MS-13” is written. Some social media users and Mr. Moran suggest that the letters were digitally added as a way of interpreting the tattoos.

It was not immediately clear where the picture came from or who might have added the “MS-13” labels.

A White House spokesman, Kush Desai, did not address questions about whether the “MS-13” was digitally added but told the Sun, “Ask any law or immigration enforcement official who’s been on the ground about Kilmar Abrego Garcia’s tattoos: they’re MS-13. An ICE investigation, a local police investigation, and the government of El Salvador have all determined that he is a wife-beating MS-13 terrorist illegal alien who should never have been in the United States. There is no dispute about these facts.”

The topic came up during the interview Tuesday when Mr. Moran asked Mr. Trump about the administration’s refusal to comply with a court order to “facilitate” the return of Mr. Abrego.

Mr. Trump said he “could” facilitate Mr. Abrego’s return but said he is “not the one making this decision.” The president then noted the government’s assertion that Mr. Abrego is a member of MS-13. “He said he wasn’t a member of a gang. And then they looked, on his knuckles, he had MS-13,” Mr. Trump said. 

Mr. Moran interjected as he said Mr. Abrego has some “tattoos that were interpreted that way.” When Mr. Moran tried to change the subject, Mr. Trump decided to press the issue, saying, “Wait a minute. …”

Mr. Moran responded, “He did not have the letters MS-13.”

Mr. Trump responded, “Don’t do that, M-S-1-3. It’s M-S one three.”

When the ABC News host said, “That was photoshopped,” the president shot back with a jab at his interviewer, saying, “That was photoshopped? Terry. … They’re giving you the big break of a lifetime. You know, you’re doing the interview. I picked you because, frankly, I’ve never heard of you, but that’s okay. But I picked you, Terry, but you’re not being very nice. He had MS-13 tattooed.”

“We’ll agree to disagree,” Mr. Moran said. Again, he tried to move on to another subject. However, Mr. Trump asked, “Do you want me to show you the picture?”

Mr. Moran again stated that Mr. Abrego had symbols tattooed on his hand that could be interpreted as MS-13 symbols, but not the actual name of the gang. 

Mr. Trump then said, “No, no. He had MS, as clear as you can be. Not interpreted. This is why people no longer believe the news.”

Mr. Moran noted that in recent pictures of Mr. Abrego in El Salvador, “MS-13” is not seen on his knuckles. 

“They weren’t there, but they’re there now, right?” Mr. Trump said. “He’s got MS-13 on his knuckles.” 

The president asked why Mr. Moran simply does not say, “Yes, he does,” and “go on to something else.”

Mr. Abrego, who entered America illegally in 2011, was deported to a mega-prison in El Salvador in March. His story garnered national attention and resulted in Senator Van Hollen traveling to El Salvador to meet with him. 

The Trump administration initially said that it wrongly deported Mr. Abrego due to an administrative error. A judge in 2019 ruled that he could not be deported to El Salvador because his life could be in danger. 

The Trump administration alleges that Mr. Abrego is a member of MS-13 and should be deported. During his interview with Mr. Moran, Mr. Trump said that the lawyer for the government who said it was a mistake to deport Mr. Abrego “should not have said that” and was “not appointed by us.”

Other pictures on social media where Mr. Abrego’s knuckles are visible show the tattoos of the symbols, but not “MS-13” written as it was in the photo shared by Mr. Trump. While conservatives argue that the symbols are clearly a reference to MS-13, multiple photographs from before his deportation do not show the name of the gang spelled out on his hand as the president seemed to imply.