'Kilmar Abrego Garcia will face trial in US': White House says Salvadoran man won't be deported to a 'third country'; dismisses media reports

The Donald Trump administration has asserted it does not plan to re-deport Salvadoran national Kilmar Abrego Garcia , saying that he was brought back to the United States from his native country El Salvador to face trial for the serious federal charges against him.

"This is fake news. Abrego Garcia was returned to the United States to face trial for the egregious charges against him. He will face the full force of the American justice system - including serving time in American prison for the crimes he’s committed," White House deputy press secretary Abigail Jackson wrote on X.


Jackson's post came after several US media outlets reported that during a hearing in the case, a federal prosecutor informed district judge Paula Xinis in Greenbelt, Maryland, that the federal government plans to deport Abrego Garcia to a “third country” which is not El Salvador.

In March, the Trump administration "mistakenly" deported the 29-year-old construction worker to El Salvador, in a case which made headlines globally. The latter has been in a Tennessee jail since he was returned to America on June 7 to face human smuggling charges stemming from a 2022 traffic stop for speeding, an incident during which nine passengers without luggage were found in the vehicle which he was driving.

He has pleaded not guilty to the charges which his attorneys have characterized as an attempt to justify his mistaken deportation.

On June 22, magistrate judge Barbara Holmes of Tennessee ruled that the Salvadoran man has a right to be released while awaiting trial. However, Holmes later decided to keep him in custody for at least a few more days over concerns immigration officials would swiftly try to deport him again.