Kilmar Abrego Garcia, released last week from a Nashville-area jail, is at risk of being deported to his native Uganda at any moment, according to his lawyers. The announcement came less than 24 hours after he was released on Friday. A representative for Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) told his legal team that this is what the government planned to do. Abrego Garcia’s case has drawn attention due to its connections to the Trump administration’s stringent immigration policies and ongoing federal human smuggling charges, which he firmly denies.
After Abrego Garcia was released from the Putnam County Jail in Cookeville, Tennessee, his legal problems only mounted. His attorneys argue that the federal government forced him to agree to an unfavorable plea deal on the human smuggling charges. Within minutes of his release, they were alerted that he needed to report to ICE’s Baltimore office on Monday morning.
Abrego Garcia has been in ICE detention since June. He was returned to the US to be tried on federal charges. In March, he was wrongfully deported with no notice to one of El Salvador’s most infamous prisons. As the Trump administration would go on to call it, an “administrative error.” A U.S. judge had earlier prohibited his deportation to El Salvador, citing fears he could face persecution there.
Safe to say that the recent developments have caused serious alarm for his legal team. Now they argue, the administration is just trying to coerce Abrego Garcia into accepting a guilty plea. In their brief, they argue that he puts him in an untenable position. He has to either plead guilty and face deportation back to Costa Rica or contest the charges and be sent to Uganda.
“There can be only one interpretation of these events: the DOJ, DHS, and ICE are using their collective powers to force Mr. Abrego to choose between a guilty plea followed by relative safety, or rendition to Uganda, where his safety and liberty would be under threat,” – Abrego Garcia’s lawyers
The urgency of Abrego Garcia’s situation is illustrated by the timeline submitted by his attorneys. He has until Monday morning to take the state’s proposed plea offer for immediate deportation back to Costa Rica. If he doesn’t, he’ll be subject to deportation back to Uganda.
“On Friday evening, the government informed Mr. Abrego that he has until first thing Monday morning—precisely when he must report to ICE’s Baltimore Field Office—to accept a plea in exchange for deportation to Costa Rica, or else that offer will be off the table forever,” – Abrego Garcia’s lawyers
We know that ISP’s allegations against Abrego Garcia included alleged connections to the notorious MS-13 gang, charges that Abrego Garcia has publicly denied. His trial date for federal human smuggling charges is currently scheduled for January. On top of all this, this case has emerged as a pivotal hinge on which the Trump administration’s immigration strategies have rested.