Kilmar Abrego Garcia‘s, a Salvadoran national and suspected member of the violent MS-13 gang, wife is now blaming husband of domestic abuse, further fueling concerns over the consequences of lax immigration enforcement policies.
Recently deported, Abrego Garcia has become a flashpoint in the national immigration debate after a court audio recording surfaced detailing disturbing claims of abuse.
The audio, obtained by USA Today, features Jennifer Vasquez Sura pleading with a judge in an August 2020 hearing for a protective order against her husband. In her emotional testimony, Sura described repeated instances of alleged physical violence.
“On Wednesday, he hit me, like around, like, three in the morning,” Sura told the judge. “He would just wake up and hit me.”
She went on to describe a chilling incident in which she screamed for help while trying to escape her husband. “He grabbed me from my hair, and then he slapped me,” Sura said, noting that a nearby neighbor saw the event but was so shocked they didn’t intervene.
An audio recording obtained by USA today captures the wife of Kilmar Abrego Garcia pleading with a judge to issue a protective order against her abusive husband. pic.twitter.com/4zYU7kqftY
— Resist