Judge dismisses criminal case against Kilmar Abrego Garcia

A federal judge says the Maryland man who was wrongfully deported last year is being prosecuted for political reasons. Judge drops criminal case against Kilmar Abrego Garcia Kilmar Abrego Garcia: 'I stand before you as a free man' Copyright current_year BBC. All rights reserved. The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites. Read about our approach to external linking. Copyright current_year BBC. All rights reserved. The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites. Read about our approach to external linking. Kilmar Abrego Garcia was mistakenly deported to El Salvador and brought back to the US last year Judge dismisses criminal case against Kilmar Abrego Garcia A US judge has dismissed the criminal case against Kilmar Abrego Garcia, who was wrongfully deported to a megaprison in El Salvador last year. Abrego Garcia, whose deportation became a major flashpoint in the debate over the Trump administration's immigration agenda, returned to the US in June after the government admitted it had wrongfully sent him back to his native country. After his return, federal prosecutors charged him with human smuggling over a 2022 incident in Tennessee where he was found to have several people in his car during a traffic stop. He pleaded not guilty. On Friday, the federal judge dismissed the case and said Abrego Garcia had been charged for political reasons. "The Court does not reach its conclusion lightly," US District Judge Waverly Crenshaw wrote in her opinion. She said the case was only launched to justify the government's decision to deport the 30 year old. The judge also said the Trump administration had failed to rebut the "presumption of vindictiveness". "The objective evidence here shows that, absent Abrego's successful lawsuit challenging his removal to El Salvador, the government would not have brought this prosecution," the Tennessee judge said. "The Executive Branch closed its investigation on the November 2022 traffic stop. Only after Abrego succeeded in vindicating his rights did the Executive Branch reopen that investigation," the opinion reads. The justice department is yet to comment on Friday's decision. In the past, federal prosecutors have argued the case was apolitical and the charges were only brought because "the evidence pointed to Abrego Garcia having committed a crime". Abrego Garcia, who is married to an American citizen and has been living in Maryland for years, illegally came to the US from El Salvador when he was a teenager. Abrego Garcia speaks after his release from detention: 'I stand before you as a free man' Abrego Garcia in front of a litany of microphones. He is wearing a baseball hat. In 2019, he was arrested with three other men in Maryland and detained by federal immigration authorities. At the time, the judge granted him protection from deportation on the grounds that he could face persecution by a gang in his home country. But the Trump administration deported him to El Salvador in March 2025, prompting an order from the US Supreme Court requiring the government to bring him back. He was held in CECOT, a notrious El Salvador megaprison, for months after the courts ordered his return to the US. He was brought back only after the government had secured the human trafficking charges against him. On his return to the US last June, he was arrested and taken to Tennessee to face the charges. Lawyers for Abrego Garcia then sought to dismiss them, arguing he was being vindictively prosecuted by the justice department. In August, he was arrested again in Baltimore during an immigration meeting and held in a detention centre until another judge barred the move and ordered his release. A judge barred the government from removing Abrego Garcia to a third country while the case was ongoing, after reports emerged that the Trump administration was considering sending him to Uganda. Democratic Senator Chris Van Hollen, who visited Abrego Garcia while he was detained in El Salvador, celebrated Friday's announcement on X. "Today, a federal judge determined what we've known all along, the Trump admin was engaged in a vindictive prosecution against Kilmar Abrego Garcia," Van Hollen wrote. "This is a win for all our rights & the Constitution." Kilmar Ábrego García wearing a black shirt and a black hat, with a BBC Verify logo in the top left corner What we know about Kilmar Abrego Garcia and MS-13 allegations Kilmar Abrego Garcia, who was sent to a prison in El Salvador during a Trump administration deportation initiative Can the US return man deported to El Salvador? Immigration lawyers think so A person holds a sign with a picture of Kilmar Ábrego García Who is the man in middle of Maryland deportation case? Kilmar Abrego Garcia, wearing a black hat and holding a microphone, speaks to supporters as he arrives for his first check-in at the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Baltimore Field Office. Kilmar Abrego Garcia freed from US immigration detention A new policy closes a loophole that has allowed people to apply for a green card, or permanent residency, while in the country. More than 30 people, including firefighters, were hurt in the incident, which was described as "a complex, fast-developing emergency situation". A new law in the US will compel social media companies to comply with police warrants within days in cases of stalking. Gabbard who has been largely out of public view during recent US operations says she is leaving due to her husband's illness. Eligibility for the fund appear broad, as Republicans and Democrats demand answers and guardrails The $1.8bn (£1.3bn) fund compensates individuals "unfairly" investigated under previous presidents. The US has warned that a peaceful agreement with Cuba is unlikely, Havana insists this is a "fraudulent case" designed to justify military intervention. The US president piled major pressure on Kevin Warsh's predecessor to cut interest rates.