The Trump administration admitted on Monday to deporting a man to El Salvador and handing him over to authorities following an "administrative error."
Kilmer Armado Abrego-Garcia was deported on March 15 as the U.S. sent three planes from the U.S. to El Salvador, purporting that those on the planes were members of the Tren de Aragua and MS-13 gangs. The deportations came after President Donald Trump enacted the Alien Enemies Act regarding the invasion of the United States by the Tren de Aragua.
As the deportations were taking place, a federal judge ruled that the deportations should be stopped to allow due process to occur.
Despite this, the flights continued to their destinations. El Salvador's President, Nayib Bukele, stated that 238 suspected gang members arrived in his country and were transferred to the "Terrorism Confinement Center," where they will be held for a year. According to a Monday court filing by Robert L. Cerna, an acting field office director with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Abrego-Garcia should not have been placed on the third of three flights.
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"This removal was an error," he said. "Through an administrative error, Abrego-Garcia was removed from the United States to El Salvador."
"This was an oversight, and the removal was carried out in good faith based on the existence of a final order of removal and Abrego-Garcia’s purported membership in MS-13," Cerna added.
According to court filings, Abrego-Garcia was accused of being a member of the MS-13 gang in 2019 and was subject to deportation, but an immigration judge intervened and ordered ICE not to deport him to El Salvador. The Department of Justice said in its filing that Abrego-Garcia is a danger to the community, and there is a "strong public interest" against importing alleged members of a violent gang into the U.S., despite a judge granting him asylum in 2019.
ICE said that Abrego-Garcia was detained on March 12 after being informed that his "immigration status had changed."
Abrego-Garcia has a wife and a 5-year-old daughter, who are both U.S. citizens. Abrego-Garcia’s family has sued the U.S. government, requesting that Abrego-Garcia be returned to the U.S. and for the Trump administration to stop payments to El Salvador for housing deportees. Abrego-Garcia's family says that he is in danger being housed in El Salvador's CECOT prison. The U.S. government denies that he is in danger.
His family also denies he is a member of MS-13.
On Tuesday, the White House defended the deportation, doubling down on claims Abrego-Garcia was a member of the MS-13 gang.
"Foreign terrorists do not have legal protections in the United States of America anymore, and it is within the president's executive authority and power to deport these heinous individuals from American communities. It is a promise he campaigned on. It is a promise he is keeping and every single person in this room should be grateful for that," said White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt.
Government officials also say a judge has no jurisdiction over a foreign nation; therefore, the court would be unable to compel El Salvador to return Abrego-Garcia to the U.S.
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The case is being considered in a Maryland U.S. District Court.
