Inset: In the background is a clip of President-elect Donald Trump from his appearance on “Meet the Press” on December 8, 2024 (NBC News/YouTube), while in the foreground, we see immigration records for Kilmar Abrego Garcia (WTTG/YouTube).
After months of the Trump administration asserting that Kilmar Abrego Garcia couldn’t be brought back to the U.S., the resident, who was wrongfully deported in March to a notorious labor camp in El Salvador without due process, is now on his way back to the country.
ABC News reported that Abrego Garcia was being transported back to the U.S. on Friday afternoon. Upon his return, he is expected to face federal charges, according to a “source familiar with the matter” who spoke to the network. ABC also noted that the Salvadoran national will be charged with two federal counts of illegally transporting undocumented migrants within the United States upon his arrival.
A federal grand jury in Tennessee reportedly indicted Abrego Garcia on the two charges last month.
Those charges appear to stem from a November 2022 traffic stop in which Abrego Garcia was transporting about 10 people in an SUV that was pulled over by the Tennessee State Highway Patrol. Abrego Garcia, who was said to be driving 75 mph in a 65 mph zone, told the troopers that he and the other men in the vehicle were on their way back from a construction job in St. Louis, Missouri.
Federal authorities are alleging that Abrego Garcia had been part of a yearslong scheme to transport illegal migrants out of Texas and into the interior of the U.S., per ABC.
News of Abrego Garcia’s return marks a major development in one of the most high-profile and contentious lawsuits of President Donald Trump’s second term in office. The case has consistently garnered national attention, particularly since the administration spent weeks appearing to ignore orders from a district court, appellate court, and the U.S. Supreme Court directing the administration to “facilitate” his return.
This is a developing story.
