By Laura Romero
Kilmar Abrego Garcia is expected back in court on Friday.
Abrego Garcia, a Salvadoran native who had been living in Maryland with his wife and children, was deported in March to El Salvador’s CECOT mega-prison — despite a 2019 court order barring his deportation to that country due to fear of persecution. The Trump administration claimed he was a member of the criminal gang MS-13, which his family and attorneys deny.
He was brought back to the U.S. in June to face human smuggling charges in Tennessee, to which he has pleaded not guilty.
After being released into the custody of his brother in Maryland pending trial, he was again detained by immigration authorities, who indicated their intention to deport him.
Last week, an immigration judge denied a motion by Abrego Garcia’s attorneys to reopen his immigration case.
Source: abcnews.go.com