NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WKRN) — Days before his next hearing and arraignment, attorneys for a Maryland man mistakenly deported to El Salvador have asked the court “for what he has been denied the past several months — due process.”
Kilmar Abrego Garcia landed in the United States last week to face criminal charges, according to U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi.
Bondi claimed Abrego Garcia and co-conspirators worked to bring undocumented immigrants to the U.S., including minors, from around 2016 until this year. He has also been accused of trafficking narcotics, abusing women and has been associated with child sexual abuse.
Abrego Garcia appeared in a Nashville courtroom last week and has been scheduled for another hearing and arraignment Friday, wherein Magistrate Judge Barbara Holmes will decide if the U.S. government is entitled to a detention hearing.
However, on Wednesday, his attorneys argued the “government is not entitled to seek detention in this case” and sought to deny the government’s motion for detention.
The filing argues the United States’ claims that Abrego Garcia could be motivated to flee if convicted due to a high chance of deportation to El Salvador “are baseless,” noting that though he has been accused of a crime, it does not mean he would pose a flight risk.
Additionally, they argue there is “no serious risk” that he would obstruct justice and argue that his felony case “does not involve minors.”