CHICAGO, Ill. (WTVO) Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker announced the state will take punitive actions against the country of El Salvador for holding Kilmar Abrego Garcia in custody.
“The United States Constitution guarantees due process. We are witnessing Donald Trump erode our fundamental Constitutional rights in real time, and we must fight to restore the balance of power,” said Pritzker. “The State of Illinois will stand up for the Rule of Law and do everything in our power (to) stop the Trump Administration from ripping apart our most basic rights.”
Abrego Garcia, an accused MS-13 gang member, was deported from Maryland to his home country in March, despite a 2019 court order barring his deportation to El Salvador due to fear of persecution.
JB Pritzker wants to stop contracts with companies controlled by El Salvador
Pritzker has asked the Illinois State Board of Investment, the State Universities Retirement System and the Teachers’ Retirement System to review any investments in companies controlled by El Salvador, with the purpose of withholding investments in those companies.
The governor is also directing the Illinois Department of Central Management Services to identify state contracts with companies controlled by El Salvador, with the purpose of stopping them.
Additionally, Pritzker wants the Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity Office of Trade and Investment to send in an analysis of the scale of trade El Salvador has with Illinois.
The action comes as the outspoken Illinois governor positions himself in global affairs, which have included signing trade agreements with the State of Mexico and the United Kingdom, efforts that some say point to a possible 2028 presidential run.
Kilmar Abrego Garcia mistakenly deported to El Salvador
Abrego Garcia, 29, was mistakenly deported in March. He entered the U.S. illegally but has been living in the country with his wife under protected legal status since 2019.
That protected legal status should’ve prevented him from being deported after a judge heard his case and decided his life was in danger in El Salvador. According to court documents, he was arrested in 2019 in Maryland, along with two known members of MS-13, for “loitering” in a Home Depot parking lot.
A police report from the Prince George’s County Police Department in 2019 noted, “He was wearing a Chicago Bulls hat and a hoodie with rolls of money covering the eyes, ears and mouth of the presidents… Officers know such clothing to be indicative of the Hispanic gang culture.”
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Credit: U.S. District Court -
This undated photo provided by Murray Osorio PLLC shows Kilmar Abrego Garcia. (Murray Osorio PLLC via AP) -
HYATTSVILLE, MD – APR 4: Jennifer, center, whose husband Kilmar Abrego Garcia was deported by ICE, is hugged by a staff member of CASA, at the CASA Multicultural Center during a press conference ahead of Garcia’s hearing. -
GREENBELT, MD – APR 4: Protestors stand outside the U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland during Kilmar Abrego Garcia’s hearing. -
HYATTSVILLE, MD – APR 4: Jennifer Vasquez Sura, whose husband Kilmar Abrego Garcia was deported by ICE, speaks at a rally and press conference at the CASA Multicultural Center ahead of his hearing. -
GREENBELT, MD – APR 4: Protestors stand outside the U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland during Kilmar Abrego Garcia’s hearing. -
HYATTSVILLE, MD – APR 4: Lucia Curiel, who represented Kilmar Abrego Garcia, speaks at a press conference and rally for Garcia before his hearing, at the CASA Multicultural Center. -
This undated photo provided by CASA, an immigrant advocacy organization, in April 2025, shows Kilmar Abrego Garcia. (CASA via AP)
The Trump administration has continued to argue that Abrego Garcia is a gang member after they say a confidential informant identified him as such, specifically saying he was part of MS-13’s Long Island leadership.
MS-13, also known as Mara Salvatrucha, has been designated as a terrorist organization by the U.S. State Department. It was created by Salvadoran immigrants in the country before gaining a foothold in Central America, officials said.
Abrego Garcia has denied the accusations and said he’s never been to Long Island. Law enforcement in Suffolk County and Nassau County in New York State does not have an arrest record or a record of investigation into him.
Supreme Court orders Trump admin to facilitate Kilmar Abrego Garcia’s return
A federal judge said that the Trump administration is ignoring court orders, obstructing the legal process and acting in “bad faith” by refusing to provide information about the steps it has taken, if any, to free Abrego Garcia from an El Salvador prison.
The U.S. Supreme Court ordered the Trump administration nearly two weeks ago to facilitate Abrego Garcia’s return to the U.S. from a Salvadoran prison, rejecting the White House’s claim that it couldn’t retrieve him after mistakenly deporting him.
Trump administration officials have pushed back, arguing it is up to El Salvador, though the president of El Salvador has also said he lacks the power to return Abrego Garcia.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
