Trump Says He Could Speak with Salvadoran Authorities to Return Deported Man

U.S. President Donald Trump said “he could” speak with Salvadoran authorities to organize the return of Kilmar Abrego Garcia, a longtime Maryland resident mistakenly deported to El Salvador by the U.S. government in March, but says it’s up to Salvadoran leaders to make the call.

Trump’s comments, made in a television interview with ABC News that aired on Tuesday, came in the wake of a Supreme Court ruling made on April 10 ordering the government to secure the safe return of Abrego Garcia.

Background of the Case

The 29-year-old father of three was removed from the U.S. despite a 2019 court order barring his deportation to El Salvador due to existing threats to his life in the country. Nonetheless, the Trump administration has repeatedly argued that it is the responsibility of the Salvadoran president, Nayib Bukele, to send Abrego Garcia home, despite Bukele’s claim that he does not have the power to do so.

ABC News’ Terry Moran probed the president on his decision not to help Abrego Garcia.

Trump’s Response

“You could get him back. There’s a phone on this desk,” Moran said.

“I could,” Trump replied, adding that he is ill-inclined to do so due to his administration’s claims that Abgreo Garcia was involved in gang activity.

“If he [Abrego Garcia] were the gentleman that you say he is, I would do that, but he’s not,” the president told Moran, adding that the decision is not up to him.

The Trump administration says Abrego Garcia has ties to the MS-13 gang, a claim Abrego Garcia’s lawyers vehemently deny while noting that he has never been charged with a crime.

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Video: El Salvador Blocks US Senator from Visiting Wrongly Deported Salvadoran Man

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El Salvador blocks US senator from visiting wrongly deported Salvadoran man

Domestic Violence Allegations

During the interview, Trump also referred to Abrego Garcia as “a tough cookie” and said he “beat the hell out of his wife.”

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Abrego Garcia’s Family

Abrego Garcia’s wife, Jennifer Vasquez Sura, accused him of domestic violence and received a temporary protection order against him in 2021. She told reporters that the situation has not escalated since and that she opted not to go ahead with court proceedings, according to CBS News.

Protesters show support for Jennifer Vasquez Sura, the wife of Kilmar Abrego Garcia, who was mistakenly deported to El Salvador. The Trump administration admits Abrego Garcia was deported accidentally, but has not yet acted on a judge’s order to facilitate his return to the U.S.

Tasos Katopodis / Getty Images

Trump Denies Disobeying Supreme Court Order

Similarly, in a Time magazine interview last week, Trump denied that his administration contravened the Supreme Court’s order.

When asked if he was “disobeying” the 9-0 ruling, the president said, “Well, that’s not what my people told me—they didn’t say it was, they said it was—the nine to nothing was something entirely different.”

During further questioning, Trump brushed off responsibility entirely.

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Senator’s Visit to El Salvador

Earlier this month, Maryland Sen. Chris Van Hollen travelled to El Salvador to meet with Abrego Garcia and push for his release.

He was able to sit down with his constituent for one hour in a hotel after multiple attempts to meet with him were rejected.

Photos released by Van Hollen’s office offer the only evidence of Abrego Garcia’s well-being since he arrived in El Salvador over a month ago.

Four House Democrats — Yassamin Ansari, Maxine Dexter, Maxwell Frost and Robert Garcia — were denied a similar visit.

In this handout provided by Sen. Van Hollen’s Office, U.S. Sen. Chris Van Hollen (D-MD) meets with Kilmar Armando Abrego Garcia (L) at an undisclosed location on April 17, 2025, in San Salvador, El Salvador.

Sen. Van Hollen’s Office / Getty Images

Abrego Garcia’s Background

Abrego Garcia fled to the U.S. illegally around 2011, the year he turned 16, according to documents filed in his immigration case. He joined his brother, Cesar, now a U.S. citizen, in Maryland and found work in construction.

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Deportation and Family

He gained lawful status in the U.S. in 2019, but was arrested last month and flown to El Salvador on one of multiple high-profile flights carrying alleged Venezuelan gang members, despite an existing order prohibiting his return to the country due to threats of gang persecution.

Abrego Garcia’s family was being extorted by local gangs in El Salvador when he fled the country almost 15 years ago.

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