The Trump administration has acknowledged mistakenly deporting a Maryland man with protected legal status to a notorious El Salvador prison but is opposing his return to the United States, citing alleged gang affiliations and limited government authority over El Salvador.

Lawyers for Kilmar Armando Abrego Garcia, 29, deny any gang ties and argue that the U.S. government has failed to provide evidence supporting its claim.

Abrego Garcia was arrested in Baltimore on March 12 after finishing his shift as a sheet metal apprentice and picking up his five-year-old son, who has autism and other disabilities, from his grandmother’s home. Following his arrest, he was transferred to the Terrorism Confinement Center (CECOT) in El Salvador, a prison known for alleged human rights abuses. His wife later identified him in publicly released images from the facility.

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) admitted in a court filing on Monday that Abrego Garcia’s deportation was an “administrative error.” The acknowledgment has drawn sharp criticism from immigration advocates, while administration officials, including Vice President J.D. Vance, continue to assert that he is a gang member.

Gang Allegations Traced to 2019 Arrest

Abrego Garcia, who arrived in the U.S. in 2011 to escape gang violence in El Salvador, has lived in Maryland with his U.S. citizen brother. He later married a U.S. citizen and has been working in construction to support his family.

The government’s claim that Abrego Garcia is affiliated with MS-13 stems from a 2019 arrest outside a Home Depot in Maryland, where he and other men were looking for work. According to court documents, county police questioned him about gang membership and detained him after he denied any involvement.

At a subsequent immigration hearing, ICE cited local police reports that “verified” his gang membership based on his clothing, which included a Chicago Bulls hat and hoodie, and an informant’s claim linking him to an MS-13 faction in Long Island, New York—despite him never having lived there.

An immigration judge denied his asylum request in 2019 but ruled that he could not be deported to El Salvador. ICE did not appeal the ruling, and Abrego Garcia remained in the U.S. under protected status, checking in with ICE as required.

Legal Battle Over Return to the U.S.

Abrego Garcia’s lawyers argue that the government had multiple legal avenues if it sought to remove him, including appealing the judge’s decision or seeking his deportation to another country. Instead, he was put on a plane to El Salvador despite his protected status.

ICE officials defended the deportation, with Acting Field Office Director Robert Cerna stating that it was carried out “in good faith” based on an existing removal order and alleged gang affiliation.

The administration is now resisting calls to return Abrego Garcia, arguing that the court lacks jurisdiction since he is no longer in U.S. custody. Officials also assert that he poses a danger to the community, despite his lack of criminal charges or convictions.

Vice President Vance reiterated the administration’s stance, sharing court documents from Abrego Garcia’s 2019 proceedings and stating that the government should prioritize American citizens over deported individuals accused of gang involvement.

The case has sparked renewed debate over immigration policies and procedural failures within ICE, particularly regarding deportations of individuals with legal protections.