A gay Venezuelan makeup artist was wrongly identified as a gang member by US immigration officials before being deported to El Salvador, sparking outrage among human rights advocates and lawmakers.
Lindsay Toczylowski, founder of the Immigrant Defenders Law Center, revealed that her 31-year-old client, Andry (whose name has been withheld due to safety concerns), was detained by ICE despite having no criminal history. Andry’s name later appeared on an internal government list of migrants deported to El Salvador’s Terrorism Confinement Center, a prison notorious for human rights abuses.
Andry’s case is among several recent deportations that have raised questions about the Trump administration’s use of the Alien Enemies Act, which allows for the deportation of individuals suspected of gang affiliation without court hearings. A District Court Judge James Boasberg has ruled that migrants are entitled to individualized hearings to determine whether the act applies to them.
Critics, including Republican Senator Marco Rubio, have expressed shock and outrage over the deportations, calling into question the administration’s claims about the migrants’ affiliations. One deported migrant, Franco José Caraballo Tiapa, a 26-year-old Venezuelan barber with no criminal record in the US, has also spoken out about his wrongful detention.
The El Salvador prison, known as Cecot, has been described as having harsh and life-threatening conditions, including beatings by guards and the use of electric shocks. The Trump administration’s handling of these deportations has raised concerns about its commitment to upholding human rights and due process.
Boasberg has sought more information from the administration about the deportations, which have sparked a debate over the use of the Alien Enemies Act in immigration cases.
Source: https://www.forbes.com/sites/saradorn/2025/03/24/what-to-know-about-andry-31-year-old-makeup-artist-falsely-deported-to-el-salvador-prison-lawyer-says