Debunking DHS’s Claims About Kilmar Abrego Garcia

Despite the courts slamming the administration for how poorly it has treated Kilmar Abrego Garcia, the White House continues to make false claims about him

Refuse Fascism and march for Kilmar Abrego Garcia in Washington, D.C. | April 19. 2025 | Victoria Pickering | Creative Commons

Considering how often Trump likes to sue people for saying things that aren’t wholly positive about him or his administration, their duplicity in blatantly making false claims about migrants and citizens alike cannot be overemphasized. There’s no more obvious case of this than how far the administration is going to defame Kilmar Abrego Garcia, who fled El Salvador fearing for his and his family’s life when he was just a teenager.

Garcia came to the U.S. in 2011 at the age of sixteen after members of the Barrio 18 gang in El Salvador threatened to kill him and rape his sisters. He eventually settled in Maryland, where he lived with his brother for many years without any legal trouble. In 2019, however, he was arrested for loitering while outside of a Home Depot looking for work. It was then that a now disgraced police officer pointed him out as an MS-13 gang member.

When lawyers demanded to see the evidence against Garcia, they were informed that a police report was never filed and that the officer who made the claim had been suspended for leaking information to a local sex worker. Garcia never faced charges. Meanwhile, after many court hearings and appeals, an immigration judge ruled that Garcia wasn’t eligible for asylum. The judge also ruled that, despite issuing a deportation order, Garcia could not be deported.

Garcia is considered a stateless refugee because it is not safe for him to be sent back to his country of origin, El Salvador, and both U.S. and international law protect him from deportation. One major issue here is that Garcia no longer has the protection that comes wth a pending case in immigration court, and the administration is attempting to find a so-called “safe third country” to send him to. And because the administration is cruel, they want to send him to Uganda and not another country the U.S. has Safe Third Country Agreements with, such as Canada or Paraguay.

Even after Garcia was detained, summarily deported, and incarcerated in El Salvador’s notorious mega prison, CECOT, the administration has tried every trick it can muster and failed to have the courts rule in its favor. After being released from CECOT and later incarcerated and held for no valid reason, the courts demanded that Garcia be released based on the laws and rights afforded to him by the U.S. Constitution. That has not stopped the White House.

On August 22, Homeland Security Secretary Kristin Noem condemned Garcia’s release using the same inflammatory language, calling him an “MS-13 Gang Member, human trafficker, wife beater, and child predator,” without citing any evidence or continuing to cite evidence that has been debunked or thrown out in court due to its frivolous nature.

“Activist liberal judges have attempted to obstruct our law enforcement every step of the way in removing the worst of the worst criminal illegal aliens from our country,” said Secretary Noem on Friday. “Today, we reached a new low with this publicity-hungry Maryland judge mandating this illegal alien, who is a MS-13 gang member, human trafficker, serial domestic abuser, and child predator, be allowed free.”

Her evidence lies, again, with debunked information, and she repeatedly continues to cite how a member of the Prince George's County Police Gang Unit validated Garcia as an MS-13 gang member while ignoring that his testimony has been thrown out. She continues to cite the video that allegedly shows him as a human trafficker, but fails to acknowledge that making such a claim based on such a dubious video does not equate to evidence or guilt. Attorneys questioned the credibility of the people who provided statements against Garcia because they are facing a host of criminal charges and provided statements as part of a plea agreement.

Noem also continues to use allegations as evidence of criminality, such as old and no longer valid restraining orders against him, while also alleging that, “according to court filings,” Garcia solicited nude photographs of a minor. However, she only cited a New York Post article, which does not provide any evidence to support such a claim, but rather hearsay.

"A coconspirator alleged that the defendant solicited nude photographs and videos of a minor,” said U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi in June. “A coconspirator also alleges the defendant played a role in the murder of a rival gang member’s mother."

Interestingly, the allegations made by the so-called co-conspirators in the soliciting photos case, which Noem continues to cite publicly, are not in the indictment against Garcia, and Garcia’s wife slammed the White House for using the restraining orders against him, saying, they’re “not a justification for ICE’s action.” This has not deterred the White House.

On August 25, Noem bragged about taking Garcia back into custody during an immigration check-in and said he would be processed for removal to Uganda. The courts have so far prevented his deportation pending an evidentiary hearing, but it’s unclear if that will hold.

“Today, ICE law enforcement arrested Kilmar Abrego Garcia and are processing him for deportation,” said Noem. “President Trump is not going to allow this illegal alien, who is an MS-13 gang member, human trafficker, serial domestic abuser, and child predator, to terrorize American citizens any longer.”

Later, on Monday, DHS came out swinging against any lawmakers who pointed out how far the White House is going to manufacture crimes to make Latino immigrants seem like hardened criminals. Noem and her staff continued to use the same accusations and allegations against Garcia without providing any evidence of these supposed crimes. Crimes that the courts have repeatedly said never occurred based on the scant evidence DHS has provided.

“Kilmar Abrego Garcia is not and will never be a Maryland Man—he is a criminal, illegal alien from El Salvador, and public safety threat,” said a Senior DHS Official. “It is insane that sanctuary politicians chose to glorify and stand with an MS-13 gang member over the safety of American citizens. President Trump and Secretary Noem are not going to allow this illegal alien—who is an MS-13 gang member, human trafficker, serial domestic abuser, and child predator—to terrorize American citizens any longer.”

The far-right and DHS have been hung up on calling Garcia a “Mayland Man” instead of their preferred hateful language of calling him an “illegal alien.” DHS also included, in its press release, a list of “sanctuary politicians who continue to defend this known MS-13 gang member, human trafficker, wife beater, and child predator,” again using inflammatory language and baseless accusations that will inevitably lead to lawmakers being targeted by extremists who support what the administration is doing despite the facts.

Garcia hasn’t done anything wrong. Even if he did, like many other migrants who fell on the wrong side of the law and did their time, they paid their debt to society according to the laws of this country and the court system that upholds those laws. Additional punishment, especially being sent to third countries with poor human rights records, serves one purpose: intentional cruelty inflicted on Latinos and Black people.

Whether you’re an immigrant or not, the White House doesn’t seem to care.

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I’m an independent investigative journalist who enjoys digging deeper into the stories you see on the news. Find my work at Unicorn Riot, The Antagonist Magazine, Latino Rebels, and more. I’m also on TikTok, Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, Mastodon, and Threads. To support my work, become a paid subscriber or donate via Venmo, PayPal, or Cash App.