(Luis Cornelio, Headline USA) Kilmar Abrego Garcia, the illegal alien dubbed the “Maryland Man,” refused deportation to Uganda, once again claiming fear of persecution. This marked the 23rd country he rejected.
Garcia’s purported fears prompted the Trump administration on Friday to propose he be deported to Eswatini, a landlocked country in Southern Africa.
An ICE official wrote in an email shared by Fox News: “As you know, the United States seeks to remove you from the United States based on your final order of removal. Currently, you are designated to be removed to Uganda. Your attorney has informed us, however, that you fear persecution or torture in Uganda.”
The ICE official added that Garcia’s claims were “hard to take seriously” as he had claimed the same fear in at least 22 different countries.
BREAKING: @FoxNews has obtained an email ICE sent to Kilmar Abrego Garcia’s lawyers this afternoon notifying them that ICE now plans to deport him to the tiny African country of ESWATINI due to him claiming fear of persecution/torture in Uganda & 20+ other countries, which ICE… pic.twitter.com/qpPiE6ZeyB
— Bill Melugin (@BillMelugin_) September 5, 2025
So far, Garcia has rejected deportation to Caribbean or tourist havens like Belize, Costa Rica, Panama, Dominican Republic and Brazil. The other countries were El Salvador, Uganda, Mexico, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Paraguay, Peru, Uruguay, Venezuela, Cuba and Haiti.
The Trump administration has spent weeks trying to deport Garcia, who Democrats claimed had been mistakenly deported earlier this year.
An illegal alien from El Salvador, Garcia is an alleged MS-13 gang member now facing federal charges for human trafficking.
His case has become a rallying point for Democrats protesting Trump’s immigration policies.
The administration maintains Garcia was never wrongfully deported, noting he has a final removal order from an immigration judge. That order was temporarily blocked by a federal judge, triggering the current standoff.
