US judge orders Trump administration to allow lawyers access to Venezuelan man held in El Salvador 'supermax' prison
20 May 2025, 01:50 | Updated: 20 May 2025, 02:05
A US judge has ordered the Trump administration to allow lawyers access to a Venezuelan man wrongly deported to an El Salvador 'mega-prison'.
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The Texas judge handed down the order on Monday afternoon, in what's thought to be the first legal ruling of its kind since the Trump administration began using the Alien Enemies Act to deport migrants to the South American 'supermax' prison.
The order will force the administration to facilitate contact between Venezuelan national Widmer Josneyder Agelviz Sanguino, 24, and his lawyers.
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The judge has given the federal government until Wednesday afternoon to initiate contact between the prisoner and legal professionals.
Traditionally, The Terrorism Confinement Center, or CECOT, where the man is being held, do not allow contact between inmates and the outside world - a rule that includes lawyers.
The order by Judge Keith P. Ellison gives the government just 24 hours to confirm the location of the 24-year-old Venezuelan man and 48 hours to “restore and help maintain attorney-client communication” with him.
"This shows that the court is as concerned as we are as to the whereabouts of this individual and the illegal justification for his continued detention,” said Javier Rivera, the Houston lawyer representing Sanguino said.
Last month, Maryland Senator Chris Van Hollen travelled to an El Salvador mega-prison to meet a man wrongly deported from Maryland by the Trump administration.
The senator shared a series of snaps of his meeting with Kilmar Ábrego García, who remains stranded in El Salvador, despite the White House admitting he was deported in error.
Concerns had been raised over Mr García’s whereabouts and health, with the US government refusing to provide updates on his status.
I said my main goal of this trip was to meet with Kilmar. Tonight I had that chance. I have called his wife, Jennifer, to pass along his message of love. I look forward to providing a full update upon my return. pic.twitter.com/U9y2gZpxCb
— Senator Chris Van Hollen (@ChrisVanHollen) April 18, 2025
Following the visit, El Salvador's President Nayib Bukele refused to release the father and confirmed he would remain imprisoned.
The White House, which branded the meeting “disgusting”, has accused Mr Ábrego García of being a member of the transnational Salvadoran gang MS-13, a designated foreign terrorist organisation.
His lawyer denies this.
"I said my main goal of this trip was to meet with Kilmar. Tonight I had that chance," Chris Van Hollen said on Thursday.
"I have called his wife, Jennifer, to pass along his message of love.
“I look forward to providing a full update upon my return."
White House spokesman Kush Desai said: "Chris Van Hollen has firmly established Democrats as the party whose top priority is the welfare of an illegal alien MS-13 terrorist.
"It is truly disgusting. President Trump will continue to stand on the side of law-abiding Americans."
Mr Ábrego García's lawyers have consistently denied any connection to the gang and say he has never been charged or convicted of any crimes.
Speaking after the visit, Mr Ábrego García's wife said her “prayers have been answered.”
"The efforts of my family and community in fighting for justice are being heard, because I now know that my husband is alive," she said.
"God is listening, and the community is standing strong."