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Kilmar Abrego Garcia was mistakenly deported to El Salvador despite legally living in the United States for more than a decade. The White House carried out his deportation in March 2025, then admitted that the move was an “administrative error” on their part. The Supreme Court also ruled against Donald Trump‘s administration regarding his deportation. Nevertheless, Abrego Garcia is still in an El Salvador prison, and the president of El Salvador recently spoke out about his case.
Learn more about Abrego Garcia and his deportation below.
Who Is Kilmar Abrego Garcia?
Abrego Garcia is a 29-year-old Maryland resident. He was considered an undocumented resident in 2011 when he immigrated to the U.S. at the age of 16. However, in 2019, an immigration judge granted him “withholding of removal” because his life would have been in danger by gang violence back in El Salvador. Therefore, since then, Abrego Garcia had been living in the U.S. legally up until his 2025 deportation.
According to TIME, Abrego Garcia got married while living in the U.S. and has three children living with disabilities.
In 2019, Abrego Garcia was accused by local Maryland police of being associated with the gang MS-13. Abrego Garcia denied the allegation, and he was not charged with a crime.
Why Was Kilmar Abrego Garcia Deported to El Salvador?
Trump and his administration invoked the 1798 Alien Enemies Act. This grants a president the power during wartime to deport anyone who is not a U.S. citizen. As a result, Trump planned to deport Venezuelans and other immigrants whom his administration accused of being members of the Tren de Aragua gang. The administration has indicated that it plans to send more non-U.S. citizens to the El Salvador mega prison known as CECOT (a.k.a the Terrorism Confinement Center).
Is the El Salvador President Sending Kilmar Abrego Garcia Home?
While visiting the White House in April 2025, El Salvador’s President Nayib Bukele said, “How can I return him to the United States? Am I going to smuggle him? Of course I’m not going to do it. The question is preposterous.”
Therefore, Bukele will not send Abrego Garcia back to America.
When Will Kilmar Abrego Garcia Come Home?
It’s unclear when — or if — Abrego Garcia will return home to the U.S. now that El Salvador’s president refused to send him back to the states.
After the White House admitted its “administrative error” in deporting Abrego Garcia, the Supreme Court ordered it to facilitate Abrego Garcia’s return home.
Attorney General Pam Bondi later claimed that Abrego Garcia was in the U.S. illegally and that it wasn’t up to the U.S. to bring him back to the states, according to CNN.
