The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has announced plans to deport Kilmar Abrego Garcia to Ghana, reigniting controversy over a case that has become one of the most disputed in recent U.S. immigration history.

Garcia, a Salvadoran national, had lived in Maryland with his wife and children for several years before being detained by immigration authorities.

In 2019, a U.S. court ruled that he could not be deported to El Salvador due to credible fears of persecution. However, in March 2023, he was wrongfully deported to the country in defiance of the court order.

Once in El Salvador, Garcia was reportedly detained at the CECOT mega-prison, one of the world’s largest and most heavily guarded facilities, leaving him in an extremely vulnerable situation.

U.S. authorities under the Trump administration had accused Garcia of belonging to the MS-13 gang, allegations his family and lawyers insist are false and unsupported by evidence.

His deportation, they argue, was driven by these unsubstantiated claims.

Following his forced return to El Salvador, DHS considered sending Garcia to Eswatini or Uganda, despite his having no ties to either nation.

Now, the agency has shifted focus to Ghana as his next destination—a move that his legal team calls unlawful and baseless.

The rationale behind selecting Ghana remains unclear, but government lawyers are expected to defend the decision at an evidentiary hearing scheduled for Friday, during which DHS officials will testify about the procedures surrounding Garcia’s deportation.

Garcia’s attorneys maintain that the latest deportation order represents another violation of due process, accusing the government of systematic misconduct in its handling of his case.

They have vowed to challenge the decision in court, arguing that sending Garcia to a country where he has no citizenship, family, or connection is a blatant breach of both domestic and international law.