Fact Check: Abrego Garcia is a citizen of El Salvador who had been living legally in the United States before he was wrongfully deported in March.

Fact Check: "Abrego Garcia is a citizen of El Salvador who had been living legally in the United States before he was wrongfully deported in March."

What We Know

Kilmar Armando Abrego Garcia is indeed a citizen of El Salvador who had been living in the United States. He entered the U.S. illegally in March 2012 but was granted a form of legal protection known as "withholding of removal," which allowed him to stay in the country due to a credible fear of persecution from a gang in El Salvador, specifically Barrio 18 (source-1). Despite this legal status, he was wrongfully deported to El Salvador in March 2025 without a court hearing (source-3). The deportation was later described by various officials as an "administrative error" (source-1).

Abrego Garcia's deportation sparked significant legal and political controversy, leading to a Supreme Court ruling that emphasized he had been "improperly" deported (source-1). After months of legal battles, he was returned to the U.S. to face charges related to transporting undocumented migrants (source-2).

Analysis

The claim that Abrego Garcia was a legal resident of the U.S. prior to his deportation is supported by multiple credible sources. His legal status was confirmed by an immigration judge who ruled in October 2019 that he could not be deported due to the risk of persecution (source-1). This ruling was significant as it established that he had a legitimate claim to remain in the U.S.

The circumstances surrounding his deportation raise questions about the reliability of the claims made by the Trump administration regarding his criminality. Officials alleged ties to the MS-13 gang, but these claims were based on weak evidence, including clothing and uncorroborated informant testimony (source-1). Furthermore, the Supreme Court's characterization of his deportation as "improper" lends weight to the argument that he was wrongfully removed from the U.S. (source-1).

While the Trump administration's narrative shifted over time, with some officials claiming he was not mistakenly deported, this contradicts earlier admissions from other members of the administration and court documents (source-1). The inconsistency in the administration's stance diminishes the credibility of their claims against Abrego Garcia.

Conclusion

The claim that Kilmar Abrego Garcia is a citizen of El Salvador who had been living legally in the United States before his wrongful deportation in March is True. Evidence from court rulings and credible news reports confirms that he was granted legal status in the U.S. and that his deportation was a result of an administrative error, not a legitimate legal process.

Fact Check: Abrego Garcia is a citizen of El Salvador who had been living legally in the United States before he was wrongfully deported in March.