Kilmar Abrego Garcia, the Salvadoran immigrant on the middle of a sprawling dispute over President Trump’s immigration crackdown, confronted attainable imminent deportation to the East African nation of Uganda on Monday after surrendering to authorities in Baltimore.
Abrego Garcia, 30, turned himself in to Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers, who mentioned they might begin processing him for deportation, though his attorneys vowed to sue to dam any elimination effort.
He informed supporters gathered for a rally exterior the ICE workplace that he was proud to struggle for his freedom.
“I always want you to remember that today, I can say with pride, that I am free and have been reunited with my family,” Abrego Garcia mentioned.
Salvadoran migrant and US resident Kilmar Abrego Garcia appears on as his supporters deal with the press as he arrives at a US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) area workplace in Baltimore, Maryland, on August 25, 2025. (ROBERTO SCHMIDT/AFP through Getty Photos)
Immigration officers have mentioned they plan to deport Abrego Garcia to Uganda after he declined a suggestion to be eliminated to the central American nation of Costa Rica in alternate for pleading responsible to human smuggling prices.
Trump derided Abrego Garcia as “an animal” at a White Home press convention and Legal professional Normal Pam Bondi mentioned the administration wouldn’t relaxation till he’s imprisoned for the alleged crimes.
“Through a system of liberal courts he’s been doing things, but we have that under control,” Trump mentioned.
Based on his protection attorneys, the federal government gave Abrego Garcia till very first thing Monday to just accept the Costa Rica deal plea deal or face the specter of being despatched to Uganda, an impoverished nation the place he has no ties and the place his native Spanish will not be extensively spoken.
The brand new drama unfolded after Abrego Garcia celebrated his return Friday to his American citizen spouse and household in Maryland, the place he had lived for years and labored as a sheet steel employee.
In an announcement, Justice Division spokesperson Chad Gilmartin mentioned the legal prices underscore how Abrego Garcia presents a “clear danger” and that he needs to be faraway from the U.S. or be tried and convicted.
Supporters of Kilmar Abrego Garcia rally exterior the U.S. District Court docket for Maryland throughout a listening to on his case on July 10, 2025 in Greenbelt, Maryland. (Alex Wong/Getty Photos)
“Either way, we will hold Abrego Garcia accountable and protect the American people,” Gilmartin mentioned.
Abrego Garcia’s case grew to become a flash level in Trump’s crackdown on immigration after he was detained and mistakenly deported to a infamous gang jail in El Salvador in March, regardless of a decide’s earlier dedication that he confronted a “well-founded fear” of violence there.
The Trump administration says it needs to deport hundreds of thousands of undocumented immigrants and finish what it calls an “invasion” of the U.S. by newcomers.
Dealing with a court docket order, the Trump administration introduced him again to the US in June, however then detained him on human smuggling prices.
He pleaded not responsible and requested the decide to dismiss the case, claiming that it’s legally flimsy and a brazen try to punish him for difficult his deportation to El Salvador.
Initially Printed: August 25, 2025 at 8:46 AM EDT
