Judge Orders Return of Man Trump Admin Sent To El Salvador Mega-Prison by Error

A federal judge Friday ordered President Donald Trump’s administration to return a man mistakenly sent to an El Salvador prison back to the United States.

Kilmar Abrego Garcia was detained and deported as part of the administration’s use of the 1798 Alien Enemies Act in an effort to deport illegal migrants who are also gang members. Garcia was previously granted “protected status” in the United States and was deported due to an “administrative error,” according to the administration. Garcia is originally from El Salvador, but has been living in Maryland since 2011. Garcia was removed from the country on March 15.

U.S. District Court Judge Paula Xinis ordered that Garcia be returned to the United States by Monday. The court order came in response to a lawsuit Garcia filed over his deportation. USA Today added, “Abrego Garica’s wife, Jennifer Vasquez Sura, and their 5-year-old son, who are both U.S. citizens, have sued the government demanding his return.”

NBC News reported that Erez Reuveni, a Justice Department lawyer representing the Trump administration in this matter, said at a court hearing that there has not been a “satisfactory” explanation for Garcia’s situation, admitting Garcia should not have been deported.

“I will say for the court’s awareness that when this case landed on my desk, the first thing I did was ask my client the same question,” the lawyer said. “I have not yet received an answer that I find satisfactory.”

At the hearing, Reuveni admitted he did not know the reason for Garcia being deported and he requested time for the administration to correct the mistake without “court superintendence.” ICE had previously noted in a court filing that it had no power to bring Garcia back as he is now in the custody of El Salvador.

Garcia’s lawyer noted that he does not have a criminal record, but White House officials continue to insist Garcia is a gang member.

White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt claimed this week that Garcia was involved in “human trafficking” and he is an MS-13 gang member despite having no convictions for such crimes.

In an interview with Fox News, Vice President JD Vance also justified Garcia being removed from the country, referring to him as “not exactly father of the year,” and cited “traffic violations” while accusing him of being a gang member. USA Today explained Garcia’s past detainment in the US:

The court order protecting Abrego Garcia from removal from the United States grew out of an earlier case.

In March 2019, he was arrested outside a Home Depot in Hyattsville, Maryland, where he was looking for work, after a confidential informant testified that he was an active member of the MS-13 gang, according to government lawyers. His attorneys say he was not a member of MS-13, and the government offered scant evidence to back up its claim.

A court ordered him deported to El Salvador, but Abrego Garcia applied for asylum, asking for protection under the United Nations Convention Against Torture. In court filings, he said he had come to the United States because the Barrio 18 gang, which is rivals with MS-13, was extorting and threatening him and his family for their pupusa business in their San Salvador neighborhood and pressuring him to join the gang.

Watch above via CNN.