Kilmar Abrego Garcia, whose case has become a flashpoint in President Donald Trump’s hardline immigration crackdown, wants to seek asylum in the United States, his lawyers said on Wednesday.
Abrego Garcia, 30, appeared in court to fight an effort by the Trump Administration to deport him to Uganda, a country he has never been to. His lawyers argued he could face persecution and torture if he were sent to the African country.
Abrego Garcia was detained at the ICE Baltimore Field Office on Monday after being summoned there just two days after his release from pre-trial detention on charges of human trafficking.
His detention came after his lawyers accused the Trump Administration in a court filing of trying to “coerce” their client to plead guilty to criminal charges of human trafficking or face deportation to Uganda.
Read more: Kilmar Abrego Garcia Detained by ICE Again, But Judge Blocks Deportation
Abrego Garcia’s lawyers said the federal government presented a last-ditch plea deal just before his release from pre-trial detention. In it, prosecutors offered him the chance to be deported to Costa Rica in exchange for remaining in jail until his trial and pleading guilty to charges of smuggling undocumented immigrants across the United States.
His lawyers declined to keep him in jail, but agreed to convey the offer of a plea bargain to their client. But the court filing states that “within minutes” of his release on Friday from a jail in Tennessee, Abrego’s counsel was informed by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) that he would be deported to Uganda and “ordered him to report to ICE’s Baltimore Field Office Monday.” When he did, he was detained again.
Appearing in court on Wednesday, Abrego Garcia had said that he would rather be sent to Costa Rica if he were to be deported.
Abrego Garcia’s lawyers argue that he would be in potential danger if he were deported to Uganda. While Costa Rica had reassured that there would be refugee status and safety for the Maryland Man, Uganda has not shared any of the same protections should he be deported there.
Abrego Garcia was deported in March despite a direct court order that prohibited his removal to El Salvador. The Trump Administration ignored numerous court orders, including one from the Supreme Court, that called for it to “facilitate” Abrego Garcia’s return to the U.S.
He was eventually returned to the U.S., where he was detained on human smuggling charges in Tennessee in June based on body cam footage from a 2022 traffic stop.
The Trump Administration has claimed Abrego Garcia is part of the MS-13 gang, an allegation he denies.
Abrego Garcia’s lawyers filed a lawsuit in federal court to challenge his detention and potential deportation to Uganda, demanding “a fair trial” in immigration court.
U.S. District Judge Paula Xinis ruled on Wednesday that the U.S. government cannot remove Abrego Garcia from the country before she decides the underlying case, and set an evidentiary hearing for October 6.