NASHVILLE, August 25, 2025 — U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has announced plans to deport Kilmar Abrego Garcia, a Maryland resident, to Uganda, following his release from a Tennessee jail on Friday. The Salvadoran national, who was wrongfully deported to El Salvador in March, declined a plea deal that would have sent him to Costa Rica in exchange for pleading guilty to human smuggling charges. According to a Saturday court filing, ICE notified Garcia’s attorneys that he must report to their Baltimore office by Monday morning or face deportation to Uganda, a country with no known ties to him.
Garcia’s case has become a flashpoint in President Trump’s immigration crackdown. Initially deported to El Salvador’s notorious CECOT prison despite a 2019 court order barring his removal there, Garcia was returned to the U.S. in June to face smuggling charges, which he denies. His attorneys, led by Simon Sandoval-Moshenberg, argue the Uganda threat is a coercive tactic to force a guilty plea, calling it “vindictive” and a violation of due process. They highlight Costa Rica’s offer to accept Garcia as a refugee, contrasting it with Uganda’s documented human rights abuses.
The Trump administration insists Garcia, accused of MS-13 ties, poses a community risk, though these allegations remain unproven. A Maryland judge’s ruling requires ICE to provide 72 hours’ notice before deportation, giving Garcia’s team time to challenge the move. As legal battles loom, the case underscores tensions over immigration enforcement and due process.
