(Luis Cornelio, Headline USA) A federal prosecutor resigned from the DOJ in apparent protest of the newly unsealed indictment against Kilmar Abrego Garcia, the Salvadoran alleged MS-13 member whom the national media dubbed “Maryland man.” Garcia was deported this year, but later returned to the U.S. to face human-trafficking charges.
Ben Schrader, the former head of the criminal division at the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Tennessee, resigned two weeks ago. He objected to Garcia’s indictment due to what he saw as politically motivated charges, according to ABC News.
No evidence has emerged to support Schrader’s concerns.
In a LinkedIn post reviewed by Headline USA, Schrader did not specify his reason for quitting the DOJ after nearly 15 years as an assistant U.S. attorney.
“It has been an incredible privilege to serve as a prosecutor with the Department of Justice, where the only job description I’ve ever known is to do the right thing, in the right way, for the right reasons,” Schrader wrote.
“I wish all of my colleagues at the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Nashville and across the Department the best as they seek to do justice on behalf of the American people,” he added.
Schrader’s resignation coincided with the DOJ charging Garcia with one count of conspiracy to transport aliens and one count of unlawful transportation of undocumented aliens.
“Abrego Garcia has landed in the United States to face justice,” Attorney General Pam Bondi declared at a press conference. “He was a smuggler of humans and children and women. … This is what American justice looks like.”
Garcia, a Salvadoran national, had been deported over alleged affiliations with MS-13, a foreign-designated terrorist organization. His removal triggered outrage from the left, including that of a judge who claimed Garcia had been granted temporary protection.
Despite that claim, Garcia had faced multiple domestic abuse accusations from his wife, and in November 2022, Tennessee state troopers stopped him for allegedly speeding. Inside his truck were several individuals suspected of being smuggled into the U.S. illegally.
BREAKING: Fox News has obtained video footage of Kilmar Abrego Garcia allegedly involved in human smuggling, as noted by Tennessee State Troopers.
This is the man Democrats decided to put their entire party behind lmao.
The incident happened during a traffic stop in Tennessee… pic.twitter.com/WrqkM36BkV
— Collin Rugg (@CollinRugg) May 2, 2025
Garcia was not charged at the time. This changed on Friday, when the U.S. brought him back to face prosecution.
If found guilty, Garcia could be sentenced to a maximum of 10 years for each person transported, which federal prosecutors said goes “well beyond the remainder of the defendant’s life.”
