Less than 24 hours after his release, U.S. authorities told Kilmar Abrego García that he could be deported to Uganda because he refused to accept a plea agreement to hear a criminal case.
Mr Ábrego García’s lawyer said he refused to plead guilty to human smuggling charges in exchange for deportation in exchange for deportation in Costa Rica – a deal that is obvious that he will be released.
Now, his lawyers accuse the U.S. government of trying to “force” him to plead guilty, threatening to re-reject him “in half of the world”.
El Salvadorian nationals were wrongly deported to El Salvador in March and then brought back to face criminal charges.
It was apparent on Thursday that the deal will be sent to Costa Rica on Friday, which could be rescued from the Tennessee prison on Friday.
The Costa Rican government agreed to accept him as a refugee and to provide him with legal status there, a letter from a Costa Rican official said.
According to the court application, Mr. Abrego Garcia was deported to Costa Rica only after serving his sentence on smuggling charges.
His lawyers now say that after Mr. Ábrego GoGarcía was released from federal custody, they were told that the government intends to deport him to Uganda, a country he did not know.
“The Ministry of Justice, Homeland Security Agency and Iceland are using their collective power to force Mr. Abrego to choose relative security between guilty pleas, or relative security or dismissal of Uganda, where his safety and freedom will be threatened,” the lawyer wrote in the file.
The lawyer said Mr. Ábrego García must accept defense on Monday morning in exchange for deportation to Costa Rica or the offer will never be on the table”.
It is not clear whether he is considering a government offer.
Now with family in Maryland, Mr. Ábrego García is scheduled to appear in Baltimore Immigration Court on Monday. If the judge approves the government’s request, he may face deportation within a few days.
The United States has reached a bilateral deportation agreement with Honduras and Uganda as part of its crackdown on illegal immigrants, According to documents obtained by BBC’s U.S. partner CBS.
“This is an interim arrangement that includes individuals with criminal records and unaccompanied minors,” Bagiire Vincent Waiswa, permanent secretary of Uganda’s Foreign Ministry, said in a statement.
“Uganda also likes individuals who are transferred to Uganda.”
Mr Ábrego García’s deportation case has become the focus of the Trump administration’s crackdown on immigration.
He was deported to his native El Salvador in March and was initially left in the infamous Cecot prison. But the judge ordered the government to “promote” his return after U.S. government officials admitted to being deported due to “administrative errors.”
He returned to the United States in early June and sent to Tennessee, where he was charged with human smuggling programs. He pleaded not guilty to the charges.
In late June, a federal judge in Tennessee ruled that Mr. Ábrego García was eligible for release, but he could be deported again if he leaves the facility due to concerns about his legal team.
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