Kilmar Abrego Garcia, a Maryland resident and legally protected immigrant, was mistakenly deported to El Salvador in March 2025 due to what Donald Trump‘s administration acknowledged as an “administrative error.”
The 29-year-old fled El Salvador as a teenager to escape gang violence. According to The Hill, members of the Barrio 18 gang had threatened to kill him while attempting to extort money from his mother’s pupusa business. In 2019, he was granted “withholding of removal” status, allowing him to live and work legally in the U.S. Despite this protection, he was abruptly detained and deported in March.
Abrego Garcia’s case has sparked widespread concern over executive overreach, due process violations, and the current state of immigration enforcement. Learn more about his situation and where he is now below.
Why Was Kilmar Abrego Garcia Deported?
Abrego Garcia was deported amid a broader crackdown by the Trump administration, which was rapidly organizing charter flights to El Salvador to deport a group of Venezuelan migrants. These individuals were accused of being members of the Tren de Aragua gang and were deported under the Alien Enemies Act — an 18th-century wartime law that gives the president authority to remove non-citizens during times of national conflict.
In February 2025, the Trump administration officially designated MS-13 as a foreign terrorist organization and launched aggressive efforts to remove suspected members. As part of that policy, officials have signaled intentions to continue deporting non-citizens to CECOT — El Salvador’s mega prison known as the Terrorism Confinement Center — even in cases like Abrego Garcia’s, where evidence of gang affiliation is unclear or disputed. The U.S. is currently paying El Salvador $6 million to detain individuals it alleges are members of the Tren de Aragua gang at the facility for one year.
Will Kilmar Abrego Garcia Return to the U.S.?
It remains unclear whether Abrego Garcia will be allowed to return to the U.S., though many continue to advocate strongly for his safe return to his home and family. Despite a U.S. Supreme Court ruling ordering that the legal resident must be brought back, both the Trump administration and El Salvador’s President Nayib Bukele have made it clear they will not facilitate his return.
“He is an illegal alien who has been living illegally in our country from El Salvador. ICE testified, an immigration judge ruled he was a member of MS-13. An appellate judge ruled he was a member of MS-13. Hard stop,” Attorney General Pam Bondi said during a press briefing on April 16. “He should not be in our country.”
Is Kilmar Abrego Garcia Still Alive?
On April 12, the U.S. State Department stated in a court filing that Abrego Garcia was “alive and secure” in prison. However, there has been no direct or independent confirmation of his condition since that filing.
On April 16, Maryland Senator Chris Van Hollen, speaking from the airport, said he intended to visit El Salvador to “check on [Abrego Garcia’s] well-being” and meet with Salvadoran officials.
After arriving, Van Hollen stated, “I may be the first senator or first member of Congress to go down to El Salvador, but people are going to keep coming until he comes home.”
Following his meeting with Abrego Garcia, Van Hollen spoke with CNN on April 20 and pointed out, “If we deny the constitutional rights of this one man, it threatens the constitutional rights of everybody in America.” He was referring to the right to due process.
Is Kilmar Abrego Garcia Married to a U.S. Citizen?
After arriving in the U.S., Abrego Garcia built a life in Maryland. According to TIME, court records show he got married and was raising three children with disabilities. His wife, Jennifer Vasquez Sura, is a U.S. citizen. The couple shares one child together, and Sura has two children from a previous relationship.
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