The Justice Department is contemplating relocating Kilmer Abrego Garcia to Liberia as part of their ongoing efforts to address the implications of his wrongful deportation.
A recent court document indicated that Liberia has agreed to accept him, asserting it fits Abrego Garcia’s circumstances.
“Despite the appellant listing over 20 countries where he fears persecution or torture upon removal, Liberia is not among them,” stated the Justice Department.
The Trump administration had been evaluating several nations for deportation following Abrego Garcia’s erroneous return to El Salvador. An immigration judge had intervened back in 2019, citing gang threats against his family as grounds to halt his extradition.
After spending months in a prison in El Salvador, the Trump administration managed to secure his return, but subsequently indicted him on human smuggling charges tied to a 2022 traffic incident in Tennessee where he, along with several men, was found in a van without luggage.
Abrego Garcia maintains his innocence and is pursuing the dismissal of the charges, claiming that the prosecution is politically motivated and retaliatory due to the attention surrounding his case.
A federal judge in Tennessee has supported the initial request for discovery, allowing the case to progress.
Meanwhile, the Justice Department contends that immigration authorities still hold the right to deport him, a point also being debated in federal court in Maryland.
In various submissions, the Justice Department has proposed several potential countries for his deportation, including Uganda, Ghana, and Eswatini, while Abrego Garcia has pointed to Costa Rica as an alternative.
His legal team has previously accused the Justice Department of arbitrarily selecting locations to impose hardship on their client.
“After agreements with Uganda, Eswatini, and Ghana, ICE now aims to deport Kilmer Abrego Garcia to Liberia, which has no connections to him and is far from his family in Maryland,” stated attorney Simon Sandoval-Moshenberg.
“Costa Rica has offered him refuge, a legal avenue that remains available. Yet, the government seems intent on choosing a path meant to create maximum difficulty for him. Their actions are unnecessarily harsh and unconstitutional.”
In its recent filing, the Justice Department asserted that Liberia represents a suitable option for Abrego Garcia.
“Liberia is recognized as a thriving democracy and one of the United States’ valued partners in Africa,” they noted.
“The country’s primary language is English, identical to the language spoken in the area where he has resided for years. Its constitution, effective since 1986, is influenced by the U.S. Constitution and guarantees strong human rights protections. Additionally, Liberia is committed to treating refugees humanely.”
