‘Sipping margaritas in paradise’: El Salvador president mocks picture of man at heart of deportation row

18/04/2025 3

A US senator has met with a man Donald Trump’s administration wrongly deported to El Salvador.

The Democratic senator for Maryland, Chris Van Hollen, posted photos of his meeting with Kilmar Abrego Garcia, whose attorneys are fighting to force Mr Trump’s administration to facilitate his return to the US.

He said: “I said my main goal of this trip was to meet with Kilmar. Tonight I had that chance.

“I have called his wife, Jennifer, to pass along his message of love. I look forward to providing a full update upon my return.”

El Salvador’s President Nayib Bukele also posted images of the meeting, adding in an apparently sarcastic remark: “Kilmar Abrego Garcia, miraculously risen from the ‘death camps’ & ‘torture’, now sipping margaritas with Sen. Van Hollen in the tropical paradise of El Salvador!”

The meeting came hours after Mr Van Hollen said he was denied entry into a high-security prison in El Salvador while he was trying to check on Mr Garcia’s well-being and advocate for his release – something the White House has called “appalling”.

Mr Garcia’s wife, Jennifer Vasquez Sura, said: “My children and my prayers have been answered.

“The efforts of my family and community in fighting for justice are being heard, because I now know that my husband is alive. God is listening, and the community is standing strong.

“We still have so many questions, hopes, and fears. I will continue praying and fighting for Kilmars’ return home.”

Both Mr Trump and Mr Bukele said earlier this week they have no basis to send Abreo Garcia back to the US, even though the Trump administration called his deportation an “administrative error” and the US Supreme Court has called on it to facilitate his return.

Mr Trump’s officials have said Mr Garcia, a Salvadoran citizen who was living in Maryland, has ties to the MS-13 gang.

His attorneys say the government has provided no evidence, and he has never been charged with any crime related to such activity.

Along with Mr Garcia, the Trump administration has deported hundreds of people, mostly Venezuelans, who it claims are gang members without presenting evidence and without a trial.

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Mr Garcia’s deportation has become a flashpoint in the US, with Democrats casting it as a cruel consequence of Mr Trump’s disregard for the courts, while Republicans have criticised Democrats for defending him and argued his deportation is part of a larger effort to reduce crime.

Written by: Pippa Taylor

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