Tag: Kilmar Armando Abrego Garcia

DOJ Asks Court to Set Trial Date for Kilmar Abrego Garcia to Face Human Smuggling Charges ‘As Soon as Possible’

Tom Pappert
Kilmar Abrego Garcia

The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) has requested the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Tennessee to set a trial date for Kilmar Abrego Garcia, the citizen of El Salvador who was deported in March, then returned to the United States last month to face federal human smuggling charges in Nashville. 

Acting U.S. Attorney Robert E. McGuire submitted the DOJ motion requesting Chief District Judge Waverly Crenshaw set a trial date on Wednesday, when he noted that Abrego Garcia is legally entitled to receive a jury trial within 70 days of his initial court appearance on June 6, as he has not waived his right to a speedy trial. 

Read the full story

Attorneys Claim Kilmar Abrego Garcia Subjected to Torture in El Salvador, Demand Hearing for Potential Supervised Release

Tom Pappert
Kilmar Abrego Garcia and Sen. Chris Van Hollen

Murray Osorio, the immigration law firm representing Kilmar Abrego Garcia, the citizen of El Salvador now facing federal human smuggling charges in Tennessee, on Wednesday submitted an amended complaint seeking new relief that includes the supervised release of the alleged human smuggler back into Maryland. 

The amended complaint claims that Abrego Garcia was first misled by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) after he was detained in March, when he claims he was reassured he would go before an immigration judge following his detention by agents who identified themselves as part of Homeland Security Investigations (HSI).

Read the full story

Federal Magistrate Orders Kilmar Abrego Garcia to Remain in DOJ Custody in Tennessee Until July 16

Tom Pappert
KAG Order

U.S. District Court Magistrate Barbara Holmes for the Middle District of Tennessee on Monday agreed to the request by Kilmar Abrego Garcia’s defense attorneys to delay her consideration of his potential release until July 16, when District Court Chief Judge Waverly Crenshaw will have reviewed her decision to deny the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) a detention hearing for the citizen of El Salvador.

Because Abrego Garcia is subject to a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detainer, the prosecutors, Holmes, and Abrego Garcia’s attorneys previously acknowledged her order to release the alleged human smuggler on his own recognizance would functionally facilitate his transfer from DOJ custody, where he is currently held by the U.S. Marshals, to the custody of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS), where the citizen of El Salvador will be held by ICE.

Read the full story

Prosecutor Says Court Lacks Authority to Force DHS Detainment of Kilmar Abrego Garcia in Maryland Facility

Tom Pappert
Kilmar Abrego Garcia

Acting U.S. Attorney Robert McGuire said in a filing submitted on Friday that the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Tennessee lacks the authority to instruct the U.S. Department of Homeland Security to house Kilmar Abrego Garcia in Maryland.

McGuire submitted the filing after the Maryland immigration attorneys for Abrego Garcia, the firm Murray Osorio, made their own submission to U.S. District Judge Paula Xinis, requesting the judge issue an order demanding Abrego Garcia be housed by DHS in Maryland, and that such a ruling is necessary to force compliance with an earlier ruling by the U.S. Supreme Court.

Read the full story

DOJ Says ‘Not a Surprise’ ICE May Deport Kilmar Abrego Garcia as His Lawyers Seek Support from Maryland Judge

Tom Pappert
Kilmar Abrego Garcia

The U.S. Department of Justice on Friday informed U.S. District Magistrate Judge Barbara Holmes in a legal filing that “it does not oppose” the request by Kilmar Abrego Garcia and his attorneys for a delay in her ruling on whether to release the citizen of El Salvador from Department of Justice (DOJ) custody, but appeared to question the attorneys and Holmes over their apparent “surprise” that Abrego Garcia may be deported by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).

Abrego Garcia’s request to remain in DOJ custody until July 16 was submitted by his attorneys in the federal case out of Tennessee after immigration lawyers representing the alleged human smuggler asked U.S. District Court Judge Paula Xinis to order ICE to detain Abrego Garcia in Maryland.

Read the full story

DHS to Deport Kilmar Abrego Garcia to El Salvador After Criminal Trial, Says Illegal Immigrant ‘Should Not be on U.S. Soil for Long’

Tom Pappert
Assistant Secretary Dept. of Homeland Security Tricia McLaughlin, Kilmar Abrego Garcia

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) intends to deport Kilmar Abrego Garcia to El Salvador following the conclusion of his federal trial in the Middle District of Tennessee, said assistant secretary Tricia McLaughlin.

McLaughlin made the remarks during a Friday appearance on Newsmax’s “Wake Up America” in the wake of a federal prosecutor indicating on Thursday that the federal government planned to deport Abrego Garcia to a third country if he is released from U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) custody, and White House Deputy Press Secretary Abigail Jackson later indicated the statement were misreported.

Read the full story

Kilmar Abrego Garcia Filing Claims DOJ Flipped Convicted Human Smuggler to Build Case

Tom Pappert
Kilmar Abrego Garcia

The attorneys representing Kilmar Abrego Garcia in the federal case against him in the Middle District of Tennessee claimed in a Friday legal filing that the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) offered a reduced sentence to an alleged co-conspirator in exchange for incriminating information about the citizen of El Salvador.

Submitted to U.S. District Magistrate Barbara Holmes, the request by Abrego Garcia’s attorneys request their client be kept in DOJ custody until at least July 16, which would give District Court Judge Paula Xinis time to consider the Thursday request by his immigration lawyers to force the U.S. Department of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to detain him in Maryland.

Read the full story

DOJ Confirms ICE Plans to Deport Kilmar Abrego Garcia to Third Country as His Attorneys Request Move to Maryland

Tom Pappert
Kilmar Abrego Garcia

Attorneys confirmed in court on Thursday that U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) plans to deport Kilmar Abrego Garcia, the citizen of El Salvador returned to the United States to face human smuggling charges, to a third country, if he is released from Department of Justice (DOJ) custody on Friday. 

The remarks were made in a hearing called by U.S. District Judge Paula Xinis in response to an emergency motion filed by Murray Osorio, the immigration attorneys representing Abrego Garcia in his Maryland lawsuit over his March deportation, which would compel ICE to detain Abrego Garcia in Maryland.

Read the full story

Kilmar Abrego Garcia Remains with U.S. Marshals as Judge Weighs Possible Transfer to ICE, Deportation to Third Country

Tom Pappert
Kilmar Abrego Garcia

The U.S. Marshals Service told The Tennessee Star on Thursday that Kilmar Abrego Garcia, the citizen of El Salvador deported in March and returned last month to face human smuggling charges in Tennessee, remains within their custody pending a final decision from U.S. Magistrate Barbara Holmes.

Following his Wednesday court appearance, when Holmes instructed Abrego Garcia’s attorneys to submit additional arguments ahead of his potential release, at which time he would likely be detained by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, a U.S. Marshals spokesman told The Star, “He is currently in U.S. Marshals Service custody.”

Read the full story

DHS Says ‘Dangerous’ Kilmar Abrego Garcia ‘Will Never Go Free on American Soil’ amid Pending Release from DOJ Custody

Tom Pappert
Kilmar Abrego Garcia

Tricia McLaughlin, the assistant secretary of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, told The Tennessee Star that Kilmar Abrego Garcia “will never go free on American soil” on Wednesday, shortly after U.S. Magistrate Barbara Holmes ordered additional filings to determine whether the citizen of El Salvador to be released from U.S. Department of Justice should be released from custody pending trial.

Holmes’ decision came after she, his defense attorneys, and prosecutors acknowledged the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) issued an immigration detainer for Abrego Garcia, making it likely the citizen of El Salvador will be apprehended by ICE following his release from DOJ custody on Friday.

Read the full story

Federal Court Seeks Arguments Ahead of Possible Release of Kilmar Abrego Garcia from DOJ Custody, Transfer to ICE

Tom Pappert
Kilmar Abrego Garcia

Kilmar Abrego Garcia on Wednesday was transferred from the custody of the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) in Nashville to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) after U.S. Magistrate Barbara Holmes released him on his own recognizance following her Sunday order which denied the DOJ request for a detention hearing. 

Because Abrego Garcia is subject to an active ICE detainer, Acting U.S. Attorney Robert McGuire said in a Tuesday request to stay Holmes’ decision that transferring Abrego Garcia to ICE custody will likely result in his second deportation from American soil.

Read the full story

Congressman Andy Ogles Predicts Decision to Release Kilmar Abrego Garcia to Be Overturned Unless Trump Admin Deports Him First

Tom Pappert
Andy Ogles

U.S. Representative Andy Ogles (R-TN-05) predicted a rapid approval for the request by federal prosecutors to stay the Sunday decision by U.S. Magistrate Judge Barbara Holmes to deny prosecutors’ requested detention hearing for Kilmar Abrego Garcia, but said the Trump administration could instead opt to deport the citizen of El Salvador for the second time.

Ogles made the remarks during his Monday appearance on “Just the News, No Noise,” after first questioning the determination by Holmes that Abrego Garcia does not pose a flight risk, as prosecutors alleged he is a human smuggler who completed over 100 trips throughout the United States during a decade-long involvement in a criminal conspiracy.

Read the full story

Ex-DOJ Lawyer Fired over Kilmar Abrego Garcia Case Files Whistleblower Complaint Claiming Admin Planned to Defy Courts

Tom Pappert
KAG

A U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) attorney, fired earlier this year after claiming in a legal filing that Kilmar Abrego Garcia’s deportation to El Salvador was an “administrative error,” filed a whistleblower complaint Tuesday, alleging the agency planned to conceal information from judges and deliberately defy court orders.

Erez Reuveni on Tuesday filed a complaint claiming he attempted to advise his former client, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS), that it was planning to engage in illegal activity in three separate immigration court cases, but was “thwarted, fired, and publicly disparaged” for his efforts by the Trump administration.

Read the full story

Kilmar Abrego Garcia May Be Deported Again If Released from DOJ to ICE Custody, Prosecutor Warns

Tom Pappert
Kilmar Abrego Garcia

The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) informed U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Tennessee in a Sunday filing that the decision by Magistrate Judge Barbara Holmes to deny a detention hearing for Kilmar Abrego Garcia will likely result in his deportation from the United States, as the alleged illegal immigrant smuggler is currently subject to a detainer by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). Without the stay, Abrego Garcia will likely be transferred to ICE custody following a Wednesday hearing by Holmes. 

Acting U.S. Attorney Robert E. McGuire argued in the four-page submission that Holmes failed to consider the gravity of the evidence presented during Abrego Garcia’s arraignment, when investigators testified that the Salvadoran man’s co-conspirators said he involved minors in his trip, and that one minor was being smuggled during the November 2022 traffic stop. 

Read the full story

Magistrate Judge Denies DOJ Request to Hold Kilmar Abrego Garcia in Jail, Signals Likely Release to ICE Facility

Tom Pappert
Kilmar Abrego Garcia

U.S. Magistrate Judge Barbara D. Holmes on Sunday ruled against the Department of Justice (DOJ) request for a detention hearing to determine whether Kilmar Abrego Garcia will remain in DOJ custody while awaiting trial, and instead indicated the alleged illegal immigrant smuggler would be transferred to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) custody during an upcoming hearing. 

Holmes ruled against the DOJ request to keep Abrego Garcia in its custody, claiming prosecutors failed to demonstrate the alleged human smuggler, who purportedly admitted to illegally entering the United States in March 2012, posed a flight risk. 

Read the full story

Attorney for Kilmar Abrego Garcia is Son of Nashville Mayor Who Created ‘Office of New Americans’ Accused of Doxxing DHS Agents

Tom Pappert

Kilmar Abrego Garcia, now in Tennessee awaiting trial for his alleged participation in an illegal immigrant smuggling conspiracy after pleading not guilty, requested the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Tennessee on Tuesday allow him to dismiss his public defenders in favor of new, private representation from four attorneys, including Rascoe Dean of the Nashville law firm, Sherrard Roe Voigt & Harbison. 

Rascoe Dean, the son of former Nashville Mayor Karl Dean and attorney Anne Davis, is a former federal prosecutor who entered private practice in April, and came to represent Abrego Garcia after the New York-based law firm, Hecker & Fink, sought a local attorney when it was asked to take the Salvadoran man’s case. 

Read the full story

Foundation Tied to Kilmar Abrego Garcia Lawyer Donated over $200,000 to Nonprofits Behind ‘Belonging Fund’ Aiding Illegal Immigrants

Tom Pappert
Kilmar Abrego Garcia

Recently returned to the United States to face allegations of smuggling illegal immigrants for nearly a decade, Kilmar Abrego Garcia informed the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Tennessee earlier this week of his intention to dismiss his public defenders in favor of attorney Rascoe Dean, of the Nashville law firm, Sherrard Roe Voigt & Harbison, as well as three attorneys from the Hecker & Fink law firm in New York. 

Rascoe Dean is the son of former Nashville Mayor Karl Dean and attorney Anne Davis. His mother serves as the trustee of the Joe C. Davis Foundation, established by Rascoe Dean’s great-uncle, who was an accomplished tennis player and businessman who died in 1989.

Read the full story

DOJ Asks Judge to Dismiss Kilmar Abrego Garcia’s Maryland Lawsuit After Trump Admin ‘Effectuated’ Return for Tennessee Criminal Trial

Tom Pappert
Kilmar Abrego Garcia

The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) on Monday asked District Court Judge Paula Xinis to dismiss the lawsuit brought by Kilmar Abrego Garcia against the federal government over his March deportation, arguing the Trump administration complied with the judge’s orders to “facilitate” and “effectuate” the return of the citizen of El Salvador to the United States by flying him to Tennessee in order to await trial for allegedly smuggling illegal immigrants throughout the country. 

In a motion to dismiss the lawsuit as moot, asking the judge to determine there is no further action by the court that could productively resolve Abrego Garcia’s claims, the DOJ argued that the citizen of El Salvador and his family, “have now received the relief they sought,” as the federal government has “taken extraordinary steps and have facilitated, and indeed effectuated, Abrego Garcia’s return to the United States.”

Read the full story

Kilmar Abrego Garcia Retains Top Tennessee Lawyers for Alien Smuggling Case

Tom Pappert
Kilmar Abrego Garcia

A legal filing submitted in the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) criminal case against Kilmar Abrego Garcia on Tuesday revealed the alleged illegal alien smuggler retained new attorneys, who requested the court’s permission to dismiss the public defenders who represented Abrego Garcia’s during his initial appearance in court and subsequent arraignment. 

According to the filing, the lead attorney representing Abrego Garcia is now Rascoe Dean, the son of former Nashville Mayor Karl Dean. A longtime federal prosecutor, Dean was employed by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Tennessee as the Deputy Chief of the General Crimes Unit as recently as September 2024, when he was listed as a panelist for an event held by the Federalist Society.

Read the full story

Kilmar Abrego Garcia Pleads Not Guilty to Illegal Alien Smuggling as Arraignment Draws Dozens of Protesters

Tom Pappert
Kilmar Abrego Garcia

Kilmar Abrego Garica, the citizen of El Salvador deported by the Trump administration in March, pleaded not guilty in a federal court in Nashville, Tennessee, on Friday, after the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) charged him with participating in a criminal conspiracy to smuggle illegal immigrants throughout the country for nearly a decade.

Scheduled to be arraigned at 10 a.m. on Friday, Abrego Garcia reportedly appeared remotely from Putnam County Jail via a video stream, officially entering his not guilty plea at 10:12 a.m., when The Tennessean said the crowd of protesters outside the Fred D. Thompson Courthouse reached approximately 100.

Read the full story

Immigration Lawyers for Kilmar Abrego Garcia Demand Sanctions, Including Access to ‘Personal Devices’ of A.G. Pam Bondi

Tom Pappert
AG Pam Bondi, Kilmar Abrego Garcia

The immigration lawyers representing Kilmar Abrego Garcia in his Maryland-based lawsuit claiming the federal government illegally deported him in March on Thursday submitted a filing seeking sanctions after their client was returned to the United States by the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ).

Abrego Garcia’s attorneys claim the federal government failed to comply with its discovery obligations, and that District Court Judge Paula Xinis should consider appointing a special master to oversee personal devices belonging to government officials, including Attorney General Pam Bondi.

Read the full story

Public Defenders for Kilmar Abrego Garcia Argue Alleged Human Smuggler Should be Freed Due to Deportation to El Salvador

Tom Pappert
CECOT Prison, El Salvador

The public defenders representing Kilmar Abrego Garcia in the federal criminal case against him in Tennessee submitted a motion on Wednesday night that argued that U.S. Magistrate Judge Barbara D. Holmes should not accept the government’s request to call a detention hearing in order to determine whether the citizen of El Salvador will remain incarcerated while awaiting trial for his alleged 9-year participation in an illegal immigrant smuggling ring. 

Abrego Garcia’s motion was filed in response to the Monday request by the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) for a detention hearing, when the government argued that Abrego Garcia poses a significant flight risk, victimized minor children through his participation in the smuggling ring, and could intimidate or harm co-conspirators who provided information to the federal government if set free. 

Read the full story

Climate Change Activists, Progressive Lawyers Provide ‘Training’ Ahead of Kilmar Abrego Garcia Protest in Nashville

Tom Pappert
KAG protest

Two organizations are preparing to provide training for the protesters descending on Nashville for the “Rapid Response Rally to Support Kilmar Abrego Garcia” on Friday, as revealed by one of the protest organizers, who listed an event jointly organized by a progressive legal group and climate change activists on Tuesday.

An updated web page for the protest, created by United Volunteers of TN (UVOTN), states the progressive National Lawyers Guild (NLG) and Extinction Rebellion are joining together “to put on a Know Your Rights training” just one day before the protest.

Read the full story

DOJ Says Kilmar Abrego Garcia Smuggled Illegal Immigrant Children, Could Flee If Released from Jail

Tom Pappert
Kilmar Abrego Garcia

The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) argued in a Monday legal filing that Kilmar Abrego Garcia should be confined while awaiting trial, stating that not only is the citizen of El Salvador a flight risk, but that the specific claims in the indictment alleging his crimes involving children should preclude his release from Putnam County Jail. 

The Monday filing requests a U.S. District Court Judge Waverly Crenshaw call a detention hearing to determine whether Abrego Garcia should be released from jail, noting that his alleged victim is a minor, there is a “serious risk” Abrego Garcia will flee the country, and because the DOJ is concerned he “will attempt to obstruct or attempt to obstruct justice, or threaten, injure, intimidate, or attempt to threaten, injure, or intimidate a prospective witness.”

Read the full story

Tennessee Nonprofit Claims Trump Admin ‘Ignoring Due Process’ for Kilmar Abrego Garcia ‘Regardless of the Outcome’ of Criminal Case

Tom Pappert
Kilmar Abrego Garcia

The Tennessee Immigrant and Refugee Rights Coalition (TIRRC) responded to the return of Kilmar Abrego Garcia to American soil by the U.S. Department of Justice by condemning the Trump administration for purportedly attempting to conceal its wrongdoing by revealing the alleged illegal alien smuggling committed by the citizen of El Salvador for nearly a decade. 

Calling the case “an example of what could happen to all Black and brown people” when the government defies court orders in a post to X, the nonprofit stated that the charges against Abrego Garcia, “are clearly designed to cover up” the Trump administration’s “negligence,” as well as “the fact that the Supreme Court unanimously called them out on the egregious ways they are ignoring due process.”

Read the full story

Tennessee Democrats, Activist Groups Plan ‘Rapid Response Protest to Support Kilmar Abrego Garcia’ amid Nationwide ‘No King’ Events

Tom Pappert
Kilmar Abrego Garcia

Democrats and activist groups in Tennessee have announced a “Rapid Response Protest” to show their support for Kilmar Abrego Garcia, the citizen of El Salvador who was deported in March and returned to the United States last week by the U.S. Department of Justice to face charges for an allegedly smuggling illegal immigrants, as he is arraigned in Nashville on Friday.

According to an event page on the progressive organizing website Mobilize, the protest is organized by a “group of local organizations” who claim Abrego Garcia is being subjected to “trumped-up charges” after being returned from El Salvador, where the activists claim he was “abducted” and deported “without due process.”

Read the full story

Kilmar Abrego Garcia Indictment Claims Alleged Human Smuggler Lied About Travel Schedule During Tennessee Traffic Stop

Tom Pappert
Kilmar Abrego Garcia

New details emerged within the criminal indictment unsealed by the U.S. Department of Justice against Kilmar Abrego Garcia, the citizen of El Salvador deported by the Trump administration in March and returned last week to face charges, including that Abrego Garcia allegedly lied to Tennessee Highway Patrol (THP) troopers when explaining the travel itinerary that led him to Tennessee.

After The Tennessee Star was first to report that Abrego Garcia was stopped in Putnam County, Tennessee, on November 30, 2022, by a THP trooper who observed him speeding and failing to maintain his lane, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) quickly confirmed the Salvadoran was suspected of human trafficking during the stop, and that Abrego Garcia told troopers he was traveling from St. Louis, Missouri, to Maryland.

Read the full story

DOJ Returns Kilmar Abrego Garcia to United States to Face Charges for Alleged Nine-Year Career in Illegal Alien Smuggling

Tom Pappert
Kilmar Abrego Garcia

The U.S. Department of Justice on Friday announced that Kilmar Abrego Garcia was returned to the United States from El Salvador to face charges in response to a grand jury indictment that accuses him of completing more than 100 trips while smuggling illegal immigrants throughout the country. 

U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi announced the charges in an afternoon press conference, confirming the grand jury returned its indictment on May 21, just weeks after The Tennessee Star was the first to report that Abrego Garcia was suspected of human trafficking by the Tennessee Highway Patrol (THP) in November 2022, and that his release was ordered by the “Biden-era FBI.”

Read the full story

Kilmar Abrego Garcia to Reportedly Face Criminal Charges Following Return to United States

Tom Pappert
Kilmar Abrego Garcia

A Friday report claimed that Kilmar Abrego Garcia, the citizen of El Salvador deported in March by the Trump administration, is being returned to the United States in order to face criminal charges from the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) for transporting illegal immigrants throughout the interior of the country.

Abrego Garcia became the subject of national controversy after a government lawyer claimed that he was mistakenly deported in violation of a 2019 final deportation order that included a withholding of removal order for one of two countries, either El Salvador or Guatemala, leading the U.S. Supreme Court to require the Trump administration “facilitate” his return to the United States.

Read the full story

DOJ Reportedly Gave ‘Limited Immunity’ to Human Smuggler Who Owned Van Driven by Kilmar Abrego Garcia for Details on 2022 Trip

Tom Pappert
Kilmar Abrego Garcia

News emerged on Tuesday that the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ), who The Tennessee Star reported last week is now investigating Kilmar Abrego Garcia, offered “limited immunity” to the owner of the vehicle driven by the Salvadoran national on his November 2022 trip from Texas to Maryland that was briefly interrupted by a Tennessee Highway Patrol (THP) traffic stop in Tennessee.

After confirming the previous reporting by The Star, the ABC News report revealed that Jose Ramon Hernandez Reyes, who the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) confirmed was the owner of the 2001 Chevrolet Silverado driven by Abrego Garcia in 2022, recently spoke to a DOJ lawyer regarding the stop after being offered the immunity.

Read the full story

Former Neighbors of Kilmar Abrego Garcia Deny Gang Presence Used to Justify ‘Withholding of Removal’ Order Mentioning Guatemala

Tom Pappert
Kilmar Abrego Garcia

Kilmar Abrego Garcia is the citizen of El Salvador who has claimed his March removal to a Salvadoran prison violated a 2019 final deportation order which precluded his deportation based on claims he would face persecution at the hand of a Central American gang, but Salvadoran citizens who lived in the neighborhood where the Abrego Garcia family was allegedly targeted told American reporters on Sunday that they had no memories of such gangland activities. 

The final deportation order for Abrego Garcia denied his asylum claim, as well as his claim that he would face torture in El Salvador, but specifically granted a “withholding of removal” to one nation, either El Salvador or Guatemala, based on claims that Abrego Garcia would face persecution from the gang Barrio 18.

Read the full story

Kilmar Abrego Garcia Claimed to Work in Nashville and St. Louis During 2022 Traffic Stop

Tom Pappert
Kilmar Abrego Garcia

Body-worn camera footage provided to The Tennessee Star last week by the Tennessee Department of Safety and Homeland Security (TDOSHS) in response to its Open Record Request, showing the November 2022 traffic stop of Kilmar Abrego Garcia by Tennessee Highway Patrol (THP), shows the Salvadoran citizen claim to have business in both Nashville, Tennessee and St. Louis, Missouri, before he was released at the instruction of the “Biden-era FBI,” as THP told The Star last month.

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has confirmed highway patrol suspected Abrego Garcia of human trafficking, and portions of the video containing unredacted audio shows troopers expressed doubt in the alleged itinerary of Abrego Garcia and his nine passengers.

Read the full story

Kilmar Abrego Garcia Had $1,400 in Cash Envelope During 2022 Tennessee Traffic Stop

Tom Pappert
Kilmar Abrego Garcia

The Tennessee Highway Patrol (THP) officers captured in the body-worn camera footage of the November 30, 2022 traffic stop of Kilmar Abrego Garcia, released by the Tennessee Department of Safety and Homeland Security (TDOSHS) to The Tennessee Star last week, said that the Salvadoran national had a pocket containing $1,400 as he transported passengers from Texas to Maryland. Confirming troopers suspected Abrego Garcia was trafficking people from Texas to Maryland, with an unexplained stop in St. Louis, Missouri, as the U.S. Department of Homeland Security confirmed last month, The Star reported last week that within the TDOSHS body camera footage, one trooper remarked, “He’s hauling these people for money.” The trooper added, “He’s getting paid to haul these people, probably to Maryland, I would say. If I had to guess.” BREAKING: Body cam footage obtained by Tennessee Star shows Tennessee Trooper saying Kilmar Abrego Garcia "hauling these people for money" pic.twitter.com/4FHWOIjSz5 — Tennessee Star (@TheTNStar) May 2, 2025 This analysis between troopers came shortly before one of the troopers divulged the cash found on Abrego Garcia’s person. “He’s got $1,400 cash in his pocket in an envelope,” said the trooper. “Probably payments.” Notably, the DHS has confirmed the 2001 Chevrolet Suburban driven…

Read the full story

Invalid ID Presented by Kilmar Abrego Garcia Expired Two Months Prior to Tennessee Traffic Stop

Tom Pappert
Kilmar Abrego Garcia

The Computer-Aided Dispatch (CAD) Report provided to The Tennessee Star by the Tennessee Department of Safety and Homeland Security (TDOSHS), containing a minute-by-minute report of actions taken by the Tennessee Highway Patrol (THP) during Kilmar Abrego Garcia’s traffic stop on November 30, 2022, revealed that the Maryland driver’s license presented by the Salvadoran citizen had been expired for more than two months at the time of the stop.

After The Star first reported that Abrego Garcia was stopped in Tennessee, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security confirmed troopers suspected him of human trafficking, and THP told The Star that troopers were instructed to release the illegal immigrant by the “Biden-era FBI.”

Read the full story

Tennessee State Agency Did Not Explain Redacted Audio in Kilmar Abrego Garcia Body Cam Release

Tom Pappert
Kilmar Abrego Garcia

The Tennessee Department of Safety and Homeland Security (TDOSHS) on Thursday sent The Tennessee Star two video files and four pages of documents from the November 30, 2022, stop by Tennessee Highway Patrol (THP) of El Salvadoran citizen Kilmar Abrego Garcia, who the U.S. Department of Homeland Security has confirmed was suspected of human trafficking by troopers after being pulled over for speeding and failing to maintain his lane.

Despite The Star seeking video recorded by dashboard and body-worn cameras from all of the THP troopers involved in the traffic stop, TDOSHS included only the footage recorded by the trooper responsible for the stop. This is despite at least one of the other troopers’ body-worn cameras being visible in the video released by TDOSHS on Thursday.

Read the full story

Tennessee Highway Patrol Officer Says Kilmar Abrego Garcia ‘Hauling These People for Money’ in Body Camera Footage

Tom Pappert
Kilmar Abrego Garcia

Body camera footage obtained by The Tennessee Star on Thursday as the result of an Open Records Request filed with the Tennessee Department of Safety and Homeland Security (TDOSHS) reveals Tennessee Highway Patrol (THP) officers discuss their suspicion that Kilmar Abrego Garcia was “hauling these people for money” during the November 30, 2022 traffic stop of the vehicle he was driving in Cookeville, Tennessee. 

It also shows the moment THP released Abrego Garcia, the Salvadoran citizen deported by the Trump administration in March, at the instruction of the “Biden-era FBI.”

Read the full story

Vehicle Driven by Kilmar Abrego Garcia in TN 2022 Traffic Stop Registered in Texas, Where Human Smuggler Who Owned it Lived in 2019

Tom Pappert
Garcia traffic stop

A response to two Open Records Requests filed by The Tennessee Star with the Tennessee Department of Safety and Homeland Security (TDOSHS), the agency that oversees the Tennessee Highway Patrol (THP), revealed that Kilmar Abrego Garcia was driving a vehicle registered in Texas when he was stopped in Cookeville, Tennessee on November 30, 2022 and suspected of human trafficking.

Though the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has confirmed the vehicle driven by Abrego Garcia was registered to Jose Ramon Hernandez Reyes, a convicted human smuggler who was arrested in 2019 on a trip from Houston, Texas, to the east coast, much of the information about the vehicle was redacted in the Computer-Aided Dispatch (CAD) report generated by the Tennessee Highway Patrol for The Star.

Read the full story

Failure of Highway Patrol to Notify TBI After Suspecting Kilmar Abrego Garcia of Human Trafficking Appears to Contradict Standard Procedure

Tom Pappert
TBI agents

The Tennessee Star was the first to report that Kilmar Abrego Garcia, the recently deported citizen of El Salvador, was stopped by Tennessee Highway Patrol and suspected of human trafficking in December 2022, with the agency ultimately confirming the “Biden-era FBI” instructed officers to release Abrego Garcia and his eight passengers, despite their suspicions of human trafficking and him presenting an invalid driver’s license. 

The decision by highway patrol not to contact the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation (TBI), which is empowered by state statute to train law enforcement officers how to detect human trafficking, and to investigate human trafficking cases across the state, appears to contradict established procedures.

Read the full story

Kilmar Abrego Garcia Now Under Active Investigation by U.S. Department of Justice, Claims Tennessee State Agency

Tom Pappert
Kilmar Abrego Garcia

The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) declined to comment on its active investigation into Kilmar Abrego Garcia, the citizen of El Salvador deported last month, after two attorneys with the Tennessee Department of Safety and Homeland Security (TDOSHS) informed The Tennessee Star of the federal investigation on Tuesday. 

The revelation that Abrego Garcia is subject to an active investigation made to The Star after it inquired about the status of the Open Records Request filed on April 17 by Michael Patrick Leahy with TDOSHS, which the agency effectively denied due to its failure to respond within seven business days, as required by the Tennessee Public Records Act (TPRA).

Read the full story

Border Czar Tom Homan Disputes Deporting Kilmar Abrego Garcia was ‘Error,’ Repudiates Claim by Fired DOJ Lawyer

Tom Pappert
Tom Homan

Trump administration border czar Tom Homan, who officially serves as the White House Executive Associate Director of Enforcement and Removal Operations, on Monday disputed the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) filing which asserted Kilmar Abrego Garcia was deported to El Salvador last month “in error.”

Despite being deemed likely to be a member of the Central American gang, Mara Salvatrucha (MS-13), Abrego Garcia has denied this, and in 2019 received a final deportation order that included a “withholding of removal” precluding his deportation to one of two nations, either Guatemala or El Salvador. Abrego Garcia argues this order was violated by his removal last month, and a former DOJ attorney stated in a legal filing that he was deported as the result of an “administrative error.”

Read the full story

Judge Who Granted ‘Withholding of Removal’ for Kilmar Abrego Garcia Helped Train Lawyers to Represent Illegal Immigrants

Tom Pappert
Kilmar Abrego Garcia

The immigration judge who issued the final deportation order that included a “withholding of removal” for Abrego Kilmar Garcia, the illegal immigrant and alleged member of Mara Salvatrucha (MS-13) who was deported last month by the Trump administration, previously volunteered to serve as the judge for a mock court session meant to train lawyers to defend illegal immigrants. 

U.S. Immigration Judge David M. Jones was listed by the Maryland Pro Bono Resource Center, an organization partnered with the Maryland State Bar Association, on an event page for its “Representing Asylum Seekers Model Hearing” event held on February 20, 2020.

Read the full story

Mississippi Traffic Stop of Human Smuggler Who Owned Car Driven by Kilmar Abrego Garcia Differed Wildly from 2022 Tennessee Incident

Tom Pappert
HSI Traffic Stop Arrest

Court records documenting the charges levied against human smuggler and illegal immigrant Jose Ramon Hernandez Reyes, obtained by The Tennessee Star on Wednesday, illustrate a stark contrast between the traffic December 4, 2019 stop of the vehicle containing Hernandez Reyes, and the December 1, 2022 stop by Tennessee Highway Patrol of a vehicle owned by Hernandez Reyes but operated by the citizen of El Salvador who was deported last month under the Trump administration, Kilmar Abrego Garcia.

The Star was first to report last week that Abrego Garcia was stopped by highway patrol in 2022, when he was transporting eight passengers from Texas to Maryland, with a claimed journey through Missouri, before reaching Tennessee.

Read the full story

Judge Who Granted ‘Withholding of Removal’ Order for Kilmar Abrego Garcia Favored Asylum Claims in Arrest City

Tom Pappert
Judge rules in court

U.S. Immigration Judge David M. Jones, who wrote the final deportation order which granted a “withholding of removal” for Kilmar Abrego Garcia, appeared to have favored asylum claims brought before him in the city where the deported citizen of El Salvador was arrested in 2019. 

Legal decisions tracked by the Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse (TRAC), a research organization at Syracuse University, reveal that Jones served on both the Hyattsville and Baltimore immigration courts from 2019 until 2024, the period covered by its most recent report.

Read the full story

Likely 2022 Travel Path of Kilmar Abrego Garcia Includes Texas County Known for Controversial Colony Ridge Development

Tom Pappert
Kilmar Abrego Garcia Cleveland

Before being stopped in Tennessee for allegedly speeding and failing to maintain his lane while transporting eight people from Texas to Maryland, Salvadoran citizen Kilmar Abrego Garcia likely passed through Liberty County, Texas, the location of the controversial housing development, Colony Ridge.

Colony Ridge allegedly caters to illegal immigrants, specifically offering homes to those who would ordinarily be unable to qualify for a mortgage due to their status as non-citizens, and was the scene of a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) raid earlier this year, which led to the arrests of more than 100, including a previously deported member of Mara Salvatrucha (MS-13).

Read the full story

Kilmar Abrego Garcia Drove Vehicle Registered to Convicted Human Trafficker During 2022 Traffic Stop in Tennessee, Court Records Confirm

Tom Pappert
Kilmar Abrego Garcia, Dodge Caravan

Kilmar Abrego Garcia was transporting eight passengers from Houston, Texas to Temple Hills, Maryland using a vehicle owned by an illegal immigrant who was convicted of human trafficking and deported from the United States to his country of origin, El Salvador.

Less than one week after The Tennessee Star reported that Abrego Garcia was stopped by the Tennessee Highway Patrol in late 2022, and released at the instruction of the “Biden-era FBI” despite being suspected of human trafficking, transporting nine passengers, and operating the vehicle without a valid license, Just the News reported that Abrego Garcia was driving a vehicle registered to Jose Ramon Hernandez Reyes.

Read the full story

Immigration Judge’s 2019 Order Found Kilmar Abrego Garcia ‘Subject to Removal’ by Deportation But Granted ‘Withholding of Removal’ to Guatemala, Though Referencing El Salvador

Tom Pappert
Kilmar Abrego Garcia

The Tennessee Star on Tuesday obtained the final deportation order issued by former U.S. Immigration Judge David M. Jones in 2019, which also granted “withholding of removal” relief, showing the judge appeared to prohibit immigration authorities from deporting Kilmar Abrego Garcia to Guatemala, not to El Salvador, where he was born and remains a citizen.

According to the order, Abrego Garcia was given a Notice to Appear (NTA) on March 29, 2019, after the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) alleged that he is not a citizen of the United States, but instead “a native and citizen of El Salvador,” who entered the United States but was not “admitted or paroled after inspection by an immigration officer,” making his entry illegal.

Read the full story

Tennessee State Agency Slow Walks Open Records Requests for Kilmar Abrego Garcia Stop by Tennessee Highway Patrol in 2022

Tom Pappert
Garcia traffic stop

The Tennessee Department of Safety and Homeland Security (TDOSHS) is slow walking two Open Records Requests, filed by The Tennessee Star last week, which seek documents and video related to Kilmar Abrego Garcia, the citizen of El Salvador who was stopped by Tennessee Highway Patrol (THP) in 2022, and deported by the Trump administration last month.

As the TDOSHS oversees the state law enforcement agency which first confirmed the 2022 stop to The Star, Editor-in-Chief Michael Patrick Leahy filed a request on April 17, seeking all records held related to the stop of Abrego Garcia.

Read the full story

Biden’s DHS Reportedly Declined to ‘Respond to the Scene’ of 2022 Kilmar Abrego Garcia Traffic Stop in Tennessee

Tom Pappert
Kilmar Abrego Garcia

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS), then led by former Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas under the Biden administration, reportedly declined to “respond to the scene” in late 2022, when law enforcement stopped a vehicle driven by Kilmar Abrego Garcia, the Salvadoran national deported last month by the Trump administration.

The Tennessee Highway Patrol (THP) told The Tennessee Star on Thursday that officers with the agency detained Abrego Garcia for nearly two hours, during which time he presented an expired, Maryland driver’s license that permits illegal immigrants to drive within the state, and was discovered to be transporting eight passengers. 

Read the full story

2022 TN Traffic Stop of Kilmar Abrego Garcia Was Day Three of Trip That Originated in Houston, Took Detour to St. Louis, Crossed Trafficking Hubs and Areas with MS-13

Tom Pappert
Garcia traffic stop

The Department of Homeland Security said on Saturday that Kilmar Abrego Garcia, the Salvadoran national deported last month under the Trump administration, told the Tennessee Highway Patrol (THP) that he was traveling from Houston, Texas to Temple Hills, Maryland, with a stop in St. Louis, Missouri during a late 2022 traffic stop in the Volunteer State.

Claiming he was transporting eight passengers for construction work, and operating a vehicle registered to his boss, DHS on Saturday revealed Abrego Garcia told THP that he began driving “three days” prior to the stretch of I-40 in Putnam County, Tennessee, where DHS reported THP stopped the vehicle for speeding and failing to maintain a lane.

Read the full story

DHS Document Confirms Kilmar Abrego Garcia Suspected of Human Trafficking During 2022 Traffic Stop in Tennessee Prior to Release by FBI

Tom Pappert
Kilmar Abrego Garcia

Two days after The Tennessee Star exclusively reported that Kilmar Abrego Garcia was pulled over by the Tennessee Highway Patrol (THP) in late 2022, when an officer suspected he was engaged in human trafficking, Bill Melugin of Fox News published a Department of Homeland Security (DHS) document confirming many details. 

The DHS document confirms THP stopped Abrego Garcia on December 1, 2022 for speeding and failing to maintain his lane. It also confirms THP officers suspected the alleged Mara Salvatrucha (MS-13) gang member was participating in “Labor/Human Trafficking” while transporting eight individuals from Texas to Maryland, meaning a total of nine individuals were traveling in the vehicle.

Read the full story