Wife of deported MS-13 suspect responds to former protection order accusing husband of beating her

The wife of Kilmar Abrego Garcia, the alleged MS-13 gang member whose deportation has become a hot issue on Capitol Hill, said she “acted out of caution” by filing for a protective order against her husband after she accused him of beating her.

Jennifer Vasquez Sura said Wednesday that she sought the 2021 restraining order because she was a past survivor of domestic violence and wanted legal protection “in case things escalated.”

“Things did not escalate, and I decided not to follow through with the civil court process,” Ms. Vasquez Sura said about the order she petitioned in Prince George’s County, Maryland. “We were able to work through the situation privately as a family, including by going to counseling.”

She said her marriage to Mr. Abrego Garcia “only grew stronger” in the years that followed.

As for the restraining order, she said “that is not a justification for ICE’s action of abducting him and deporting him to a country where he was supposed to be protected from removal.”

Mr. Abrego Garcia, 29, was deported to El Salvador’s terrorist prison last month. The illegal immigrant and suspected gang member was aboard one of three planeloads carrying other alleged gangsters, most of whom were affiliated with the Venezuelan criminal outfit Tren de Aragua.

Democrats have portrayed Mr. Abrego Garcia as a victim of the Trump administration’s sweeping crackdown on illegal immigrants.

Much of their concern is centered on a 2019 immigration order that found him to be in the country illegally but barred him from being sent back to El Salvador because he was in danger of being targeted by local gangs.

The same immigration court found credible evidence that Mr. Abrego Garcia was a member of MS-13.

A Prince George’s County police investigation cited by the court said Mr. Abrego Garcia was wearing clothing associated with Hispanic gang culture and had an assigned rank in MS-13’s hierarchy.

Sen. Chris Van Hollen, Maryland Democrat, flew down to meet Salvadoran leaders and persuade them to free the “illegally abducted” Mr. Abrego Garcia from the Terrorism Confinement Center, or CECOT.

Mr. Van Hollen met with El Salvador’s vice president, though no release agreement was made.

Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele said during a White House meeting this week that it would be “preposterous” for him to return the suspected gang member to the U.S.

The Department of Homeland Security, in a further attempt to combat Democratic messaging around Mr. Abrego Garcia’s deportation, shared details of the May 2021 protection order his wife filed.

Ms. Vasquez Sura said in the petition that Mr. Abrego Garcia “punched and scratched her eye,” which caused her to bleed.

She also said she tried to leave the house to run an errand until her husband “got angry,” yelled at her and ripped off her shorts and shirt.

“At this point I am afraid to be close to him,” Ms. Vasquez Sura said in a statement provided in the petition. “I have multiple photos/videos of how [violent] he can be.”

The temporary restraining order was dismissed in June 2021 after Ms. Vasquez Sura did not show up to court.