Mistakenly Deported Salvadoran Man Returned to U.S. to Face Human Smuggling Charges
- Victor Nwoko
- Jun 6
- 3 min read
A Salvadoran man who was mistakenly deported by U.S. authorities has been returned to the United States to face federal charges for allegedly participating in a decade-long human smuggling conspiracy that transported thousands of undocumented migrants across the country.
Kilmar Abrego Garcia, 29, was indicted by a federal grand jury in Tennessee on two counts related to transporting undocumented migrants within the United States. The sealed indictment, filed last month and unsealed Friday, accuses him of helping smuggle noncitizens — including women, children, and alleged gang members — from Mexico and Central America into the interior of the U.S., often in exchange for thousands of dollars.
According to the indictment, Abrego Garcia allegedly made more than 100 trips transporting undocumented individuals from Texas to various parts of the country. Among those transported were alleged members of the Salvadoran gang MS-13, according to sources familiar with the investigation.
He is currently the only person named in the indictment and faces the possibility of a sentence that could exceed the remainder of his life if convicted. Prosecutors have moved to detain him before trial, citing that no conditions of release could guarantee public safety or his appearance in court.
Abrego Garcia had been living in Maryland with his wife and child before being deported to El Salvador in March. His removal violated a 2019 immigration court order prohibiting his deportation due to concerns he would face persecution by local gangs in his home country. The Trump administration later acknowledged the deportation was a mistake.
Despite claiming he was a member of MS-13, a claim strongly denied by his attorneys and family, the government initially resisted efforts to bring him back. His wife filed a lawsuit that resulted in a federal judge ordering his return. The U.S. Supreme Court upheld the order on April 10.
Following that ruling, El Salvador agreed to return Abrego Garcia to U.S. custody. Attorney General Pam Bondi credited Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele with facilitating the extradition. "Our government presented El Salvador with an arrest warrant and they agreed to return him to our country," she said at a Friday press conference.
Bondi stated that if Abrego Garcia is convicted, he will be deported again after serving his sentence. "The grand jury found that over the past nine years, Abrego Garcia has played a significant role in an alien smuggling ring," she added.
Abrego Garcia’s attorney, Simon Sandoval-Moshenberg, said the legal battle is far from over. "We're not just fighting for Kilmar — we're fighting to ensure due process rights are protected for everyone. Because tomorrow, this could be any one of us."
The criminal investigation intensified after a 2022 traffic stop in Tennessee, when Abrego Garcia was pulled over while driving a vehicle carrying eight undocumented passengers. Although the officers grew suspicious about the group’s lack of luggage and his expired license, he was only issued a warning. Federal authorities later reviewed the incident as part of a broader probe.
As part of the investigation, federal agents interviewed Jose Ramon Hernandez-Reyes, the registered owner of the vehicle involved in the 2022 stop. Hernandez-Reyes is serving a 30-month sentence for illegal reentry and allegedly told investigators he had hired Abrego Garcia multiple times since 2015 to transport migrants.
Bondi said the case was able to move forward due to renewed federal commitment under President Donald Trump. “What has changed is Donald Trump is now president of the United States, and our borders are again secure,” she said.
Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche stated that the indictment has shifted the legal landscape. “The reason why he is back is because of an arrest warrant. That changes the nature of the ongoing civil litigation.”
Abrego Garcia entered the U.S. as a teenager in 2012. He married Jennifer Vasquez Sura, a U.S. citizen, in 2019, and the couple has a child. Vasquez Sura maintains her husband is innocent and acted only as a driver for construction workers.
Senator Chris Van Hollen of Maryland, who visited Abrego Garcia in El Salvador, said the deportation case was not just about one man, but about the constitutional rights of all individuals. “After months of ignoring our Constitution, it seems the Trump administration has relented to our demands for compliance with court orders and due process,” he posted.
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