By Obinna Uballa
United States immigration authorities have informed Kilmar Abrego Garcia of plans to deport him to Uganda, according to a Saturday court filing that accuses the government of using deportation threats to pressure him into accepting a plea deal.
The development comes after Abrego Garcia , who was wrongfully deported in March to a notorious prison in El Salvador, was released from a jail near Nashville, Tennessee, on Friday, CNBC reported.
He had been held there since June after being returned to the U.S. to face federal human smuggling charges, which he denies.
In the new filing, Abrego Garcia’s lawyers allege that the Trump administration offered on Thursday to deport him to Costa Rica after serving any court-imposed sentence, provided he agreed to plead guilty to both counts in his indictment and remain in jail until Monday.
Abrego Garcia rejected the offer. His attorneys claim that “within minutes of his release” on Friday, an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) representative informed them that the government intended to deport him to Uganda, ordering him to report to ICE’s Baltimore office Monday morning.
The attorneys say the administration is effectively forcing Abrego Garcia to choose between pleading guilty for deportation to Costa Rica or facing deportation to Uganda.
“On Friday evening, the government informed Mr. Abrego that he has until first thing Monday morning—precisely when he must report to ICE’s Baltimore Field Office—to accept a plea in exchange for deportation to Costa Rica, or else that offer will be off the table forever,” they wrote.
“There can be only one interpretation of these events: the DOJ, DHS, and ICE are using their collective powers to force Mr. Abrego to choose between a guilty plea followed by relative safety, or rendition to Uganda, where his safety and liberty. would be under threat,” the filing added.
His lawyers argued that the threat of deportation to Uganda supports their motion to dismiss the human smuggling charges, citing vindictive and selective prosecution.
According to news agency report, the Department of Homeland Security has not yet commented on the filing.
Abrego Garcia was first detained by ICE on March 12 and deported to El Salvador three days later in what the Trump administration later called an “administrative error.” He was sent to the notorious CECOT prison, despite a 2019 U.S. court order barring his deportation to El Salvador due to persecution risks.
The case has been on for a while. Officials allege that Abrego Garcia has ties to the violent MS-13 gang, an accusation he denies.
His trial on federal human smuggling charges is also scheduled for January.
