Kilmar Abrego Garcia, a Maryland man accused of being a key figure in an MS-13 human smuggling ring, faces potential death penalty-eligible charges for his alleged role in a 2021 incident that led to 50 migrant deaths. A former federal prosecutor highlighted that prosecutors could pursue the death penalty if they can link him to the fatal accident, even if he wasn’t directly involved in the crash. The indictment reveals Garcia’s extensive involvement in smuggling operations across Central America and the U.S., with authorities emphasizing his role as a full-time smuggler.
During a news conference, Attorney General Pam Bondi described Garcia as a full-time smuggler who racked up over 100 trips throughout the U.S., transporting MS-13 gang-affiliated members, children and women. According to the indictment, Garcia and several co-conspirators are accused of working together to transport illegal immigrants from El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Ecuador and Mexico to the U.S. for ‘profit and private financial gain.’ During one of these trips, Garcia’s alleged co-conspirators’ tractor trailer, which was carrying over 150 migrants, overturned, leaving more than 50 migrants dead and many others injured, authorities said.
Former Assistant U.S. Attorney Neama Rahmani told Fox News Digital this incident could be the basis for death penalty-eligible charges, if federal prosecutors choose to go down that route. Rahmani explained that even if Garcia wasn’t in the vehicle, as long as he’s a co-conspirator, they could potentially seek the death penalty. The classic law school example is this: You and a co-conspirator rob a bank. Your co-conspirator shoots someone during that robbery. Prosecutors can seek the death penalty even though you’re not the one who actually pulled the trigger.
Rahmani noted that the deaths wouldn’t need to be intentional for prosecutors to bring up death-penalty-eligible charges. Prosecutors don’t have to prove that Garcia intended to cause any injuries or even intended to hurt anyone. As long as they can show that he intended to smuggle people into the United States and a death resulted, that’s enough. Rahmani said that being a co-conspirator makes people criminally liable for conduct during the crime, but noted that prosecutors don’t typically seek the death penalty in instances like this.
Fox News Digital reached out to the DOJ and Garcia’s lawyer for comment.