Controversial Deportation Looms for Kilmar Ábrego García Amid Legal Turmoil

Kilmar Ábrego García faces potential deportation to Uganda after declining a plea agreement that would have deported him to Costa Rica instead, raising concerns about the U.S. government's use of coercion in legal proceedings.

Kilmar Ábrego García, an El Salvadoran national, is currently facing a tumultuous situation as U.S. authorities have informed him of a possible deportation to Uganda. This development comes just hours after his release from custody, following his refusal to accept a plea deal connected to pending human smuggling charges, according to his legal representatives.

His attorneys report that they were presented with an offer to plead guilty to the charges, which would result in his deportation to Costa Rica. This offer emerged after it became apparent that Mr. Ábrego García was set to be released from a Tennessee jail. The Costa Rican government had agreed to accept him as a refugee under humanitarian conditions, which included providing him legal status.

Following his release, however, Mr. Ábrego García's lawyers claim that authorities threatened him with deportation "halfway across the world" to Uganda if he did not comply with the plea deal. They argue that this amounts to coercion, as he has no connections to Uganda and would face significant risks if deported there.

According to documents obtained by the BBC's U.S. partner, CBS, the U.S. government established deportation agreements with both Honduras and Uganda as part of a broader effort to combat illegal immigration. Bagiire Vincent Waiswa, the Ugandan permanent secretary for foreign affairs, stated that Uganda prefers the transfer of individuals with criminal records to be restricted to those from African nations.

Mr. Ábrego García's case has gained attention as part of the ongoing conversation around immigration policies under the Trump administration. He was previously deported to El Salvador in March due to a "administrative error", only to be returned to the U.S. months later to face serious charges.

As he awaits the next steps in his legal proceedings, Mr. Ábrego García, who now resides in Maryland with family, is due to appear in a Baltimore immigration court on Monday. Should the court agree to the government's request for deportation, he may face removal within a matter of days.