U.S. District Court Judge Waverly Crenshaw, an appointee of former President Barack Obama, on Thursday canceled the evidentiary hearing where Kilmar Abrego Garcia sought to establish the human smuggling case against him was vindictive and should be dismissed, without explanation. The judge instead instructed that the court would issue a further order.
In a filing submitted by the defense attorneys later the same day, Abrego Garcia stipulated to using cell phone numbers that the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) previously alleged were used to solicit nude images from a 15-year-old girl whom he had previously smuggled, while continuing to deny the prosecutors’ claim about the solicitation.
Prosecutors told the court they planned to introduce earlier allegations of domestic abuse previously filed against Abrego Garcia to establish his association with the phone numbers.
The defense attorneys revealed that a Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) special agent interviewed the woman, who is now cooperating with prosecutors, and that she claimed, “Mr. Abrego asked for nude images of her when she was fifteen years old over Snapchat,” the social media service where messages disappear by default.
It also reveals the witness reportedly told HSI, “she and Mr. Abrego exchanged pictures of ‘adult pornography,’ and that Mr. Abrego asked if she had an OnlyFans account.”
Abrego Garcia’s attorneys acknowledged their client used the two cell phones as alleged by prosecutors, but said they had not proven he sent the messages to the minor, which were actually associated with a Snapchat account named “soytugaa,” while additionally claiming the messages do not establish which account was behind the request.
According to his lawyers, “the screenshots do not depict the user ‘soytugaa’ asking for photographs of Witness-1,” but instead, “the screenshots show that one of the chat participants saved what appears to be an image depicting nude bodies from the chat; it is not clear from the screenshot which of the users sent that image.”
They additionally wrote, “The government also has not come forward with sufficient evidence that Mr. Abrego was the user of the ‘soytugaa’ account at the time these messages were exchanged,” as it relies on testimony an HSI agent about a statement from the witness, who reportedly claimed she was aware the account was owned by Abrego Garcia when the messages were exchanged.
As a result of the purported flaws, the defense attorneys argue that prosecutors should not be allowed to reference the witness’ solicitation claim in court, as it does not directly relate to the human smuggling charges against their client.
Originally deported to El Salvador in March amid controversy, Abrego Garcia was returned to Tennessee in June, when U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi unsealed the indictment alleging he spent nearly a decade embroiled in a human smuggling ring.
The indictment was unsealed just weeks after The Tennessee Star reported that Abrego Garcia was stopped by Tennessee Highway Patrol (THP) in November 2022, and that a THP spokesman told The Star that Abrego Garcia was released at the instruction of the “Biden-era FBI,” despite a document published by the Trump administration showing troopers suspected him of human trafficking. The Star was recently recognized for its reporting on the Abrego Garcia case with the Dao Prize for Best Local Journalism.
Abrego Garcia has pleaded not guilty, and is currently detained at a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) facility in Pennsylvania. His trial is scheduled for January, but the Trump administration said it would prioritize his deportation if U.S. District Court Judge Paula Xinis, another Obama appointee, lifts her injunction blocking his removal to Liberia.
Crenshaw’s decision to cancel the evidentiary hearing came just one day after the DOJ sought Xinis’s permission to transport Abrego Garcia to Tennessee so he could attend court in person.
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Tom Pappert is a 2025 recipient of the Dao Prize and the lead reporter for The Tennessee Star. He also reports for the Star News Network. Follow Tom on X. Email tips to [email protected].
Photo “Kilmar Abrego Garcia” by Murray Osorio PLLC.
