Lawyers for Kilmar Abrego Garcia, a 30-year-old Salvadoran national, told a federal judge on Wednesday that he is seeking asylum in the United States to block his deportation to Uganda.
Abrego Garcia, who fled gang violence in El Salvador and entered the US illegally in 2011, has become a symbol of America’s hardline immigration battles.
He was mistakenly deported to El Salvador in March, where he was jailed, before being returned under court order. On arrival, authorities detained him on human smuggling charges and alleged ties to the MS-13 gang — accusations he denies.
His attorneys argue that deporting him to Uganda would expose him to persecution and amount to punishment for contesting his deportation, refusing plea deals, and seeking release from detention. They also note that he would prefer to be sent to Costa Rica if removal is unavoidable.
Abrego Garcia is married to a US citizen and has children in the country. While an immigration judge denied him asylum in 2019 for applying too late, he was granted protection from deportation to El Salvador due to credible threats from local gangs.
US District Judge Paula Xinis has scheduled a hearing for October 6 and ruled that Abrego Garcia cannot be deported before then.
Critics in Uganda allege the East African nation struck a deal with Washington to accept deportees in exchange for reduced pressure on President Yoweri Museveni’s government.
