'Wrongfully' deported man returned to US by Trump admin
Share this @internewscast.com

Left: President Donald Trump talks to reporters in the rain following his arrival on Air Force One at Joint Base Andrews, Maryland, on Friday, May 30, 2025 (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson). Right: U.S. District Judge Brian Murphy from the District of Massachusetts in April, 2024 (Instagram/Senate Judiciary Democrats)

A Guatemalan national who was found by a federal judge to have been “wrongfully” deported under the Trump administration has been allowed back into the United States and “is in immigration custody,” his lawyer has confirmed.

Identified only as O.C.G., the individual arrived in California on Wednesday via a commercial flight and consulted with his legal representatives. Trina Realmuto of the National Immigration Litigation Alliance informed Law&Crime that “if [the Department of Homeland Security] attempts to deport him to a third country once more, he must be afforded due process, which includes notice and an opportunity to present a fear-based claim.”

More from Law&Crime: Lawyers urge SCOTUS to keep blocking ‘third-country’ deportations

Upon landing, O.C.G. was taken into custody by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and transported to a detention facility in Arizona where immigration proceedings will continue pursuant to the orders of U.S. District Judge for Massachusetts Brian Murphy.

On May 23, Murphy, a Joe Biden appointee, ordered the administration to “facilitate” O.C.G.’s return to the U.S., finding his swift deportation to Mexico “troubling” given the man’s fear that he would be persecuted in that country. Murphy maintained that while an immigration judge’s withholding order barring O.C.G. from being expelled to Guatemala was followed, the man was not given a proper opportunity to state his worries of being targeted in Mexico — especially as he alleged to the judge that he was mistreated there just last year.

Love true crime? Sign up for our newsletter, The Law&Crime Docket, to get the latest real-life crime stories delivered right to your inbox.

The judge excoriated the administration for the “banal horror” of the expulsion — finding the man in February was “wrongfully loaded onto a bus and sent back to a country where he was allegedly just raped and kidnapped.” O.C.G. said he was then given a choice of remaining detained in Mexico indefinitely or returning to Guatemala. He chose the latter option and reportedly went into hiding.

The administration responded to Murphy within five days, as it was ordered to, telling the judge it was working with “ICE Air” to bring O.C.G. back to the U.S. The Justice Department’s status report appeared to be the administration’s most significant step to securing the return of a deportee deemed improperly expelled.

The case marked a notable change from others, such as that of deported Maryland man Kilmar Abrego Garcia, who the administration has admitted should not have been expelled to El Salvador, where he remains. Still, federal officials’ return of O.C.G. did not stop them from criticizing Murphy for his decision.

More from Law&Crime: ‘Presumptive right to access’: Judge to unseal slew of docs in Abrego Garcia case, saying Trump admin’s opposition doesn’t ‘withstand scrutiny’

“America’s asylum system was never intended to be used as a de facto amnesty program or a catch-all, get-out-of-deportation-free card,” DHS spokeswoman Tricia McLaughlin said in a statement, arguing Mexico actually was a “safe third option” for O.C.G.

She then lobbed attacks at Murphy similar to those President Donald Trump has at federal judges who have halted or altogether rejected his sweeping executive measures.

“Yet, this federal activist judge ordered us to bring him back, so he can have an opportunity to prove why he should be granted asylum to a country that he has had no past connection to,” McLaughlin added. “The Trump administration is committed to returning our asylum system to its original intent.”

Share this @internewscast.com
You May Also Like

Sheriff’s Deputy Accused of Assaulting and Threatening Woman in Domestic Dispute

Inset: Tyler Wood (Muncie Police Department). Background: The residential street near where…

Gainesville Resident Accused of Five Shoplifting Sprees in Just One Week

In a startling series of events, Ian Harrison Kennard, aged 33, found…

Mother Pursues Suspect After Car Theft, 2-Year-Old Injured in Shooting Incident, Police Report

Inset: Landrick Ruffin (Baton Rouge Police Department). Background: The street where Ruffin…

New Year’s Day Shocker: Woman’s Startling Comments After Alleged Stabbing of Boyfriend

Robin Todd (W. Glenn Campbell Detention Center). A South Carolina woman has…

Tragic Incident: Mother Allegedly Shoots 1-Year-Old Daughter as Toddler Sister Witnesses

Inset: Kristin Bass (Sulphur Police Department). Background: The home on Quelqueshue Street…

Homeless Man’s Arrest for Newberry Road Encampment Blaze Sparks Major Brush Fire Incident

Staff report Updated at 4 p.m. on January 2 with bail information.…

Tragic Stalking Case: Man Crosses State Lines, Shoots Ex-Girlfriend’s New Partner, and Abducts Her

Background: An apartment complex located in the 700 block of Forest Hills…

Chaos Erupts: Woman Sets Walmart Cribs on Fire with Camping Fuel, $5 Million in Damage on New Year’s Eve

Background: The Walmart located at 1275 Lake Ave. in Woodstock, Illinois (Google…

Authorities Report: Couple Allegedly Used Household Items, Including a Curtain Rod and Extension Cord, to Discipline Children

Background: The 600 block of East King Street in Lancaster, Pennsylvania (Google…