Federal authorities plan to send Kilmar Abrego Garcia to Liberia by the end of this month after a judge blocked his deportation to Uganda. Government lawyers told a Maryland court on Friday that the West African nation accepts the removal because its attorneys had not rejected it as a destination. The Trump administration claims the Salvadoran man belongs to MS-13 and helped smuggle migrants into America.
Abrego Garcia had been legally living in the United States since 2019 until officials mistakenly sent him to El Salvador in March. Authorities returned him months later but arrested him again in Tennessee for alleged human trafficking. His attorney said Costa Rica has agreed to accept his client as a refugee and accused officials of choosing a country thousands of miles from his Maryland family to cause maximum suffering.
The case has drawn attention to deportation policies that have been criticized by legal experts and rights advocates. Abrego Garcia denies all accusations and his wife holds American citizenship. Officials acknowledged the earlier deportation resulted from administrative mistakes.
Abrego Garcia had been legally living in the United States since 2019 until officials mistakenly sent him to El Salvador in March. Authorities returned him months later but arrested him again in Tennessee for alleged human trafficking. His attorney said Costa Rica has agreed to accept his client as a refugee and accused officials of choosing a country thousands of miles from his Maryland family to cause maximum suffering.
The case has drawn attention to deportation policies that have been criticized by legal experts and rights advocates. Abrego Garcia denies all accusations and his wife holds American citizenship. Officials acknowledged the earlier deportation resulted from administrative mistakes.
