(AP) – The Trump administration is fighting Kilmar Abrego Garcia ‘s bid to apply for asylum in the United States, arguing that he’s ineligible as a member of the MS-13 gang.
The Department of Homeland Security on Friday released immigration court documents that outline its arguments against Abrego Garcia applying for asylum or receiving it.
A primary argument is that Abrego Garcia is a member of a designated foreign terrorist organization, MS-13, an allegation that Abrego Garcia denies and for which he hasn’t been charged.
Abrego Garcia, 30, became a flashpoint over President Donald Trump’s immigration policies when he was wrongfully deported to his native country of El Salvador in March. The U.S. returned him in June, but only to face federal human smuggling in Tennessee, which his lawyers have called preposterous and vindictive. He has pleaded not guilty.
Abrego Garcia filed a motion in Baltimore immigration court last month to reopen his 2019 immigration case and apply for asylum again. He was denied the first time because his request came more than a year after he arrived in the U.S.
Abrego Garcia had fled threats of gang violence in his native El Salvador around 2011 to join his brother in Maryland. And while his first asylum request was denied, he was granted protection from deportation to El Salvador because he had established a well-founded fear of gang violence there.
Abrego Garcia was released in 2019 under federal supervision and continued to live with his American wife and children. He checked in with ICE each year, received a federal work permit and was working as a sheet metal apprentice earlier this year, his lawyers have said.
Immigration experts have said that Abrego Garcia’s new asylum application could lead to a green card and a path to citizenship. But by reopening his 2019 case, he also risks being sent back to El Salvador.
The Trump administration stated in court documents this week that it would pursue returning him to his native country if he successfully reopens his previous immigration case.
“Kilmar Abrego Garcia’s lawyers are playing with fire,” the Department of Homeland Security said in a statement on Friday. It added: “As a member of a designated foreign terrorist organization, MS-13, he is no longer eligible for his previous immigration relief.”
Abrego Garcia and his attorneys have repeatedly denied the MS-13 allegation. It stems from a day in 2019 when he was detained by local police in Prince George’s County, Maryland.
Abrego Garcia had arrived outside a Home Depot in search of work as a day laborer, according to court documents. Authorities had been told by a confidential informant that Abrego Garcia and other men outside the store could be identified as members of MS-13 because of their clothing and tattoos.
Abrego Garcia was never charged. He was turned over to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and subsequently applied for asylum and ultimately received protection from being deported to El Salvador.
In February, the Trump administration designated MS-13 to be a foreign terrorist organization and wrongfully deported Abrego Garcia to a notorious El Salvador prison, where he claims he was beaten and psychologically tortured. El Salvador’s president, Nayib Bukele, has denied those allegations.
Simon Sandoval-Moshenberg, Abrego Garcia’s lead immigration attorney, said in a statement Friday that Abrego Garcia would likely get asylum if he gets a fair trial.
“The only reason he was denied asylum in 2019 was because he did not file within one year of entering the United States, a problem which the government has now solved,” Sandoval-Moshenberg said. “If Mr. Abrego Garcia is allowed a fair trial in immigration court, there’s no way he’s not going to prevail on his claim for asylum.”
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