The Trump administration has maintained that the Maryland father deported to El Salvador last month was a member of the international criminal gang MS-13. 

Kilmar Armando Abrego Garcia, an El Salvadoran native who arrived in the U.S. during the Obama administration, has since filed a lawsuit against several federal officials, including Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem and Acting Director of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Todd Lyons. His attorneys argue that he was removed from the country without due process. 

Prior to his deportation in March, Abrego Garcia lived in Prince George’s County, Maryland. The El Salvadoran has claimed that a judge granted him federal protection in 2019, which should’ve prevented him from being sent back to his home country. 

According to a Monday court filing cited by The Atlantic, Immigration and Customs Enforcement said that Abrego Garcia was returned to El Salvador due to an “administrative error.” The Trump administration has opposed requests to have Abrego Garcia transported back to the U.S.

Several members of the Trump administration have asserted that Abrego Garcia’s alleged ties to MS-13 justified his arrest and removal. 

MS-13, also known as Mara Salvatrucha 13, is a brutal, criminal gang. As the U.S. Department of Justice warns, MS-13 is "well-organized and is heavily involved in lucrative illegal enterprises, being notorious for its use of violence to achieve its objectives."

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said at Tuesday's press briefing that the media’s reporting on the case “couldn’t be further from the truth.” Leavitt disagreed with the framing of Abrego Garcia as the “father of the year” who was living a “peaceful life,” stating that he violated the United States’ immigration laws. 

“He is a leader in the brutal MS-13 gang, and he is involved in human trafficking," Leavitt said. 

"And now, MS-13 is a designated foreign terrorist organization. Foreign terrorists have no legal protections in the United States of America. And this administration is going to continue to deport foreign terrorists and illegal criminals from our nation’s interior," she continued.

Department of Homeland Security Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin also accused Abrego Garcia of being a member of what she described as “the brutal MS-13 gang.” In a post on X, McLaughlin said DHS intelligence reports show that the alleged MS-13 member is involved in human trafficking. 

“The media knows that, but continue to do the bidding of these vicious gangs that terrorize Americans, while ignoring the victims,” McLaughlin wrote. “Whether this gang member is in El Salvador or a detention facility in the US, Americans can rest assured that he is off our streets & locked up.” 

ICE and the Department of Homeland Security did not immediately respond to The Christian Post’s request for comment.

Abrego Garcia’s attorneys argue that there's scant evidence that the El Salvadoran native is a member of MS-13, according to CBS News. The attorneys contend that the only proof of the alleged gang membership comes from a confidential informant and Abrego Garcia’s attire at the time of his arrest.

Prior to the 2019 protection order, Abrego Garcia was taken into police custody over alleged gang ties, according to CBS News. During a bond hearing, ICE said that a confidential informant told the agency that Abrego Garcia was an active member of MS-13. 

Abrego Garcia then filed an I-589 application for asylum, withholding of removal, and protection under the United Nations Convention Against Torture, with an immigration judge granting Abrego Garcia a "withholding of removal protection.”

On March 12, an ICE officer pulled Abrego Garcia over and said that his immigration status had changed, according to the lawsuit. During his detainment, Abrego Garcia was questioned about gang affiliations before his transfer to a detention center in Texas and subsequent deportation to El Salvador. 

Vice President JD Vance commented on the case after Jon Favreau, who served as Obama’s director of speechwriting, reposted The Atlantic’s article on X. Favreau pressed the vice president for a response, accusing the Trump administration of sending “an innocent father from Maryland to a torture dungeon in El Salvador.” 

"My comment is that according to the court document you apparently didn't read he was a convicted MS-13 gang member with no legal right to be here," Vance replied on X. 

“My further comment is that it’s gross to get fired up about gang members getting deported while ignoring citizens they victimize,” the vice president added. 

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