Kilmar Abrego Garcia, an alleged member of the MS-13 gang, has been charged with human smuggling after being returned to the United States from El Salvador, where he had been wrongfully deported. Court documents unsealed recently reveal that a senior official at the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) communicated to the acting U.S. Attorney for the Middle District of Tennessee, Rob McGuire, that prosecuting Abrego Garcia was a "top priority" following a Supreme Court ruling regarding his deportation.

In response to claims that the prosecution may be vindictive, McGuire stated that the decision to pursue a grand jury indictment was made independently by his office, not the DOJ. An email from Associate Deputy Attorney General Aakash Singh to McGuire on April 30 indicated a desire for swift action regarding the charges stemming from a traffic stop in November 2022.

The communications between DOJ officials and Tennessee prosecutors were referenced in a court order by District Judge Waverly Crenshaw, which suggested that the decision to prosecute may not have been solely McGuire's, but rather a collaborative effort involving multiple DOJ officials.

McGuire expressed in a May 15 email that he believed the DOJ was eager to have Abrego Garcia indicted quickly, indicating a sense of urgency in the matter. The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Tennessee has characterized the exchanges with the DOJ as standard procedure for high-profile cases, asserting that the ultimate decision to charge was based on established practices and the evidence available.

Abrego Garcia's case has garnered national attention since his deportation in March, which violated a 2019 court order. Upon his return to the U.S. in June, he was detained on the human smuggling charges. The Trump administration has labeled him as a member of MS-13, a claim he denies, and has expressed intentions to deport him to a third country. Currently, Abrego Garcia is free in Maryland as legal proceedings continue.