One of the Maryland immigration attorneys representing Kilmar Abrego Garcia in his civil lawsuit against the Trump administration on Friday slammed the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) after its witness, who was ordered to appear on short notice by Obama-appointed U.S. District Court Judge Paula Xinis, provided no new information about what steps were being taken to deport his client to Costa Rica.
Abrego Garcia first designated Costa Rica as his preferred destination for removal earlier this year, when the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) and State Department obtained diplomatic assurances from the Central American nation as part of a plea deal that Abrego Garcia later declined.
Following his August detention by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), Abrego Garcia renewed his designation of Costa Rica as his preferred destination for removal, but also filed a notice under the United Nations Conventions Against Torture and other Cruel, Inhuman, or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (CAT). This means that Abrego Garcia claimed to fear persecution or torture in Costa Rica, despite also identifying it as his preferred destination.
The seemingly conflicting stances by Abrego Garcia recently led DOJ attorneys to accuse him of “gamesmanship,” but immigration attorney Simon Sandoval-Moshenberg  (pictured above, left) indicated on Friday that his client remains willing to be deported to Costa Rica, and would be willing to get “on a plane” immediately if the federal government agrees.
“With regards to Costa Rica, they didn’t have any good answers for why they haven’t accepted his designation of Costa Rica, they basically tried to sort of confuse the judge with the timeline, but by the end it was clear the judge saw through that,” claimed Sandoval-Moshenberg.
In response to a question from a reporter, Sandoval-Moshenberg claimed the federal government should have known that Costa Rica was acceptable to Abrego Garcia, though he did not acknowledge that the alleged human smuggler claims to fear persecution or torture if deported there.
He told the press that the DOJ, “tried to sort of act as if they were surprised to learn today that Costa Rica is an acceptable country to Mr. Abrego Garcia, even though it’s been throughout our briefs in the past month and a half in the case, the motion to reopen in immigration court, one of the grounds was so the immigration judge could send him to Costa Rica. In the end it just wasn’t plausible that today they’re learning for the first time that he’s willing to accept Costa Rica as a country of removal.”
Sandoval-Moshenberg then suggested that Abrego Garcia and his legal team have made peace with the fact that he will be deported, but merely wanted to confirm Costa Rica as the designation.
“Obviously we don’t consider it justice, it’s not something we’re going to be happy about, that he’s going to be removed from this country,” said the attorney, “but at the very least we’ll rest assured that it’s place where he can stay, and it’s not going to end up just being a brief layover on the way to El Salvador.”
Abrego Garcia was originally deported in March, but later obtained a Supreme Court order for the federal government to facilitate his return. He was returned to the country after U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi unsealed the criminal indictment accusing him of participating in a human smuggling ring for nearly a decade.
The indictment stems from the November 30, 2022 traffic stop of Abrego Garcia by Tennessee Highway Patrol (THP), who told The Tennessee Star in April that Abrego Garcia was released at the instruction of the “Biden-era FBI.” His attorneys have recently filed to have this evidence excluded from the trial.
Abrego Garcia has pleaded not guilty, and his case is currently scheduled for a jury trial in January 2026.
Watch Sandoval-Moshenberg’s full remarks:
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Tom Pappert is the lead reporter for The Tennessee Star, and also reports for The Pennsylvania Daily Star and The Arizona Sun Times. Follow Tom on X/Twitter. Email tips to [email protected].
Image “Kilmar Abrego Garcia” by Tennessee Highway Patrol and “Simon Sandoval-Moshenberg” is by Murray Osorio.
