BALTIMORE — Supporters gathered outside the Baltimore Immigration and Customs Enforcement's field office Monday morning, chanting and praying as Kilmar Abrego Garcia walked up the steps. The chants continued when he didn't rejoin the crowd.
Three days after being freed from custody, Kilmar Abrego Garcia has been detained once again. But before entering the building, Abrego Garcia addressed the crowd alongside his family and translator.
“When I was detained, I remembered memories with my family... Those moments will continue to give me hope to continue in this fight,” he said. He went on to thank everyone, adding in Spanish, “Never lose hope. You will once again see your family too.”
He also encouraged others facing uncertainty, “To all the families who have been threatened by separation, this administration has hit us hard.”
The moments before Kilmar Abrego Garcia was detained
What began with chants of “Sí se puede” (yes you can), speeches, and songs ended with ICE agents taking him back into custody.
“Kilmar barely got to walk in the door before ICE agents grabbed him and took him away in front of hundreds of people waiting for his return,” said Jossie Sapunar, National Communications Director for CASA.
The immigrant advocacy group has been rallying behind Abrego Garcia throughout his months-long legal battle. He was mistakenly deported to El Salvador in March, then brought back to the U.S. in June to face human smuggling charges in Tennessee.
Sapunar was with Abrego Garcia and his family over the weekend, singing him happy birthday with a cake that read “Justice.”
"Hearing his message we have to remember that he wants us to keep fighting not just for him but for so many immigrants that have been taken from their families that are suffering wondering if the world has forgotten them. We have not," said Sapunar.
One supporter, Nadine Seiler, said she was disappointed but not surprised by what happened at the ICE office.
“Because this is a lawless administration, I expected them to do exactly what they did,” she said.
Even as a U.S. citizen now, Seiler said she never lets her guard down.
“As you hear, I have an accent and I know I eventually will be in their crosshairs," she said.
