LEILA FADEL, HOST:
The Trump administration wants to deport Kilmar Abrego Garcia to Uganda, even though he has no connection to that country. But his attorneys told a federal judge this morning that he is seeking asylum in the United States. In March, Abrego Garcia, who was living with his family in Maryland, was illegally deported by the Trump administration to a prison in El Salvador before returning to the U.S. NPR's Scott Neuman has the story, and he joins me now. Good morning, Scott.
SCOTT NEUMAN, BYLINE: Good morning.
FADEL: OK. So this case has gotten so much attention, and there have been a lot of twists and turns. So before we get to the likelihood of him getting deported to Uganda, just get us up to speed on Abrego Garcia's case.
NEUMAN: Right. He was returned to the U.S. in June to face human smuggling charges. He was released from custody on Friday, only to be picked up again by ICE agents on Monday. Abrego Garcia denies the allegations against him. Now, the Trump administration seems determined to deport him again.
On Monday, both President Trump and Attorney General Pam Bondi said they want him out of the U.S. And they repeated unproven claims that Abrego Garcia is a criminal and a member of the MS-13 gang. Here's Bondi in the Oval Office on Monday.
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PAM BONDI: We've got him under control. He will no longer terrorize our country. He's currently charged with human smuggling, including children. The guy needs to be in prison. He doesn't need to be on the streets, like all these liberals want him to be.
NEUMAN: As for the courts, a federal judge this morning gave Abrego Garcia more time to fight his deportation. He'll remain in U.S. custody, but won't be going to East Africa - at least, not yet. The judge in Maryland set a next hearing for October 6 while Abrego Garcia pursues a separate claim of asylum. So it really depends on how this plays out in court.
FADEL: OK. So if he is removed to East Africa, what exactly will happen?
NEUMAN: Immigration and deportation experts I talked to say a couple of agents from ICE's enforcement and removal operations unit will escort him on a flight to Uganda. He'd likely have his feet and possibly his hands shackled the whole time. Cesar Cuauhtemoc Garcia Hernandez is a law professor at Ohio State University who studies immigration.
He says Abrego Garcia could be flown on a military transport or a chartered passenger jet, such as a Boeing 737. As you can imagine, that's not cheap, so the government could wait and deport him along with others.
CESAR CUAUHTEMOC GARCIA HERNANDEZ: And this is why we typically do not see ICE deport one at a time. They are simply too expensive. Now, in this circumstance, we would not be surprised if ICE decides that it is worth the money, given the high profile nature of Mr. Abrego Garcia's fight.
NEUMAN: Arriving in Uganda, there'd be some paperwork to do, and after that, the ICE agents would return to the U.S.
FADEL: But, Scott, has Uganda agreed to any of this?
NEUMAN: It has agreed, but we - as far as we know, we don't really know how the Ugandan government will react once he arrives in the country. We reached out to the Ugandan embassy for comment, but we didn't hear back. Uganda's foreign ministry did say last week that it made a deal with the U.S. to take some deportees, but not people with criminal records.
Garcia Hernandez from Ohio State University says the White House's allegations against Abrego Garcia might be enough for Uganda to conclude he's dangerous and needs to be detained, even though he doesn't have a criminal record. Uganda's foreign ministry also says it prefers to take deportees who are from Africa.
For that reason, Uganda might want to pass him back to El Salvador. That could allow the Trump administration to get around a court order that Abrego Garcia not be sent from the U.S. to El Salvador. An immigration judge found in 2019 that he had a well-founded fear of gang persecution there.
FADEL: That's NPR's Scott Neuman. Thank you, Scott.
NEUMAN: Thank you.
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