Kilmar Ábrego García, a man wrongfully deported to El Salvador, now faces grave accusations regarding his treatment. These charges add further color to his experience in one of the country’s most infamous prisons. From psychological to physical torture, the claims detail the abuse he suffered during those three months in Cecot, in the community of Guayanilla. This facility has gained national notoriety for its brutal and extreme solitary confinement practices.
The moment Ábrego García set foot in El Salvador, government officials arrested him. They went after him for supposedly being connected to the street gang MS-13 judging by former President Donald Trump’s racist and xenophobic comments about his tattoos. Prison officials later admitted that his tattoos were not gang-related, informing him, “your tattoos are okay.” He remained in protective custody, away from inmates identified with gangs.
During the years of his confinement, Ábrego García suffered extreme difficulties. He was denied use of a bathroom, leading him to poop in his pants. According to reports, on his fast, he lost 31 pounds within the first two weeks of his incarceration. The toll of this dramatic weight loss reveals the brutal conditions he faced inside. He was locked up in an even more overcrowded cell without windows in which bright lights were kept on around the clock.
The Trump administration first said that it was unable to help him come back from El Salvador. But in the end, he was rescued and returned to the United States. Today, he is being charged with human-smuggling by the U.S. Justice Department, for which he has entered a not guilty plea. His attorneys contend that these new charges reflect a wholly inappropriate effort to bless the administration’s earlier error in deporting him.
A federal judge in Tennessee has ordered Ábrego García’s release while his criminal case moves forward. Prosecutors said that if released, he would again be detained by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).
Prison officials allegedly threatened Ábrego García with violence. They claimed that he would be “ripped to shreds” if put into the GP with prisoners charged with belonging to a gang. This reality underscores the tragic nature of his continued detention. It’s a glimpse into an ongoing outcry over the way U.S. officials mistreat deported people.