Award-winning Spanish-language journalist Mario Guevara has been deported to El Salvador, amid claims of “retaliation for reporting” on his part.
According to Guevara, who cited the Committee for Protecting Journalists (CPJ), this deportation marks a significant event as the organization described it as a unique case of reprisal related to journalistic activities.
Catherine Jacobsen, who coordinates CPJ’s U.S., Canada, and Caribbean programs, confirmed these details.
Guevara arrived in El Salvador on Friday, and Salvadoran immigration authorities released him shortly after.
“I feel sad, but I feel happy to be home,” Guevara said in an interview with a journalist in El Salvador. “I mean, they didn’t execute me. Perhaps the racist government wanted to execute me.”
“And I’m in my hometown,” he added. “So at the end of the day, I think it’s a blessing.”
Back in June, local authorities had arrested Guevara while he was live-streaming an anti-Trump demonstration called “No Kings” near Atlanta, Georgia.
He faced three misdemeanor charges for illegal gatherings, obstruction, and being a pedestrian on the road. Although a judge ordered his release on bail, immigration and customs enforcement (ICE) took him into custody.
After being transferred to the Folkestone ICE Processing Center in southern Georgia, Guevara moved through two additional detention centers.
Even after an immigration judge ordered his release on bond following the dismissal of all misdemeanor charges, ICE continued to detain him. His family unsuccessfully attempted to pay his $7,500 bond three times. Moreover, Guevara filed a lawsuit against the Trump administration in August, claiming his detention was unconstitutional.
As the founder and journalist of MG News, Guevara has resided in the United States for over two decades. He initially entered the country legally in 2004 and sought asylum in 2005, fearing for his safety in El Salvador due to his journalistic work.
“Mario Guevara was legally here in this country, but he was targeted for removal because the government wanted to suppress his First Amendment rights,” Nora Benavidez, a senior adviser at the Free Press media advocacy group, stated. “It is devastating to see this administration abandon the core principles of freedom that the United States was built upon.”
In a response, Tricia McLaughlin, Deputy Director of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), said she was “pleased to report that Mario Guevara is back in El Salvador.”
“If you come to our country and break our laws, we’ll arrest you and you’ll never come back,” McLaughlin added.
