Notorious gang member/US plans to deport Garcia to Uganda

2025-08-23 22:15:00, Kosova & Bota CNA

Less than 24 hours after his release, US authorities have informed Kilmar Abrego Garcia that he could be deported to Uganda, following his refusal to accept a plea deal in a pending criminal trial, his lawyers say.

Abrego García's lawyers said he rejected an offer to plead guilty to human trafficking charges in exchange for deportation to Costa Rica — a proposed deal after it became clear he would be released from custody on Friday. Abrego García, a Salvadoran national, was wrongly deported to El Salvador in March by the Trump administration and later brought back to the U.S. on criminal charges. Officials allege that Abrego Garcia has ties to the MS-13 gang, an allegation he has denied.

The deal to be sent to Costa Rica was offered Thursday after it became clear that Abrego Garcia would likely be released from a prison in Tennessee on Friday. The Costa Rican government agreed to accept him as a refugee and grant him legal status there, according to a letter from a Costa Rican official included in the legal filing. His lawyers said that upon Abrego Garcia's release from federal custody, they were informed of the government's intention to deport him to Uganda - a country with which he has no known ties.

Abrego Garcia, who is now in Maryland with his family, is scheduled to appear in court in Baltimore on Monday. If the judge approves the government's request, he could face deportation within days. The US has reached bilateral deportation agreements with Honduras and Uganda as part of its crackdown on illegal immigration, according to documents obtained by the BBC's US partner CBS.

"This is a temporary arrangement with conditions that include that individuals with criminal records and unaccompanied minors will not be accepted. Uganda also prefers that individuals from African countries be the ones to be transferred to Uganda," Bagiire Vincent Waiswa, permanent secretary at Uganda's foreign ministry, said in a statement.

The deportation case of Abrego Garcia has become an integral part of the Trump administration’s crackdown on immigration. He was deported to his native El Salvador in March and initially held at the notorious Cecot prison. But after U.S. government officials admitted that he was deported due to an “administrative error,” a judge ordered the administration to “facilitate” his return. He returned to the United States in early June and was sent to the state of Tennessee, where he was charged with a human smuggling scheme.

Ai është deklaruar i pafajshëm për akuzat. Në fund të qershorit, një gjyqtar federal në Tenesi kishte vendosur që Abrego Garcia kishte të drejtë për lirim, por mbeti në burg për shkak të frikës së ekipit të tij ligjor se ai mund të deportohej shpejt përsëri nëse largohej nga institucioni./ CNA, përkthyer nga BBC