The World Today
US Judge Barbara Holmes has released Salvadoran Kilmar Ábrego, who will return to his family in Maryland where he will face trial on human trafficking charges. The court ordered his return to the United States in early June following his deportation to El Salvador, in one of the most high-profile cases stemming from the Trump administration's tough expulsion policy.
To date, Ábrego was in federal custody in a Tennessee prison, where he was arrested in 2022 during a traffic stop in which he was transporting nine undocumented individuals. After being deported and held at the Terrorism Confinement Center (CECOT) in El Salvador, a court suspended his deportation and ordered his return, ruling that it was an administrative error.
The judge has ordered Ábrego to be released into the custody of his brother and that he must appear before the morning of Monday, August 25, to face the preliminary phase of his trial in the state of Maryland, according to the court ruling reported by the Bloomberg news agency.
The document also states that if detained by immigration authorities in Maryland, the Salvadoran citizen must have in-person and telephone access to his attorneys to prepare his legal defense.
Last Tuesday, Ábrego requested his release so he could return to Maryland and that his criminal case be dismissed, alleging a "vindictive" prosecution by the Department of Justice .
For their part, prosecutors allege that he transported undocumented immigrants to the United States on more than 100 trips between Texas, Maryland, and other states. They allege connections between Ábrego García and the Mara Salvatrucha criminal gang, which the defendant has categorically denied.
Regarding his release from prison, U.S. Homeland Security Kristi Noem said the judge showed a "total disregard for the safety of the American people" by releasing Ábrego. "We will not stop fighting until this Salvadoran man faces justice and leaves our country," she declared in a message on her X social media account.
DEPORTATION TO UGANDA
In fact, just hours after his provisional release, Ábrego's lawyers received a notification from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement threatening his possible deportation to Uganda "within 72 hours" starting Monday.
ICE has also informed Ábrego that he must report to its offices in Maryland this coming Monday, according to a copy of the notice published by Fox News.
This situation comes after the Ugandan government reached an agreement with the United States to accept deportations of third-country nationals.
