Kilmar Abrego Garcia pleads not guilty to human smuggling charges in Tennessee federal court

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Kilmar Abrego Garcia, whose mistaken deportation has become a flashpoint in President Donald Trump’s immigration crackdown, pleaded not guilty Friday to human smuggling charges in a federal court in Tennessee.

The hearing was the first chance the Maryland construction worker has had in a U.S. courtroom to answer the Trump administration's allegations since he was mistakenly deported in March to a notorious prison in El Salvador.

Abrego Garcia’s attorneys have characterized the smuggling case as a desperate attempt to justify the mistaken deportation. The investigation was launched weeks after the U.S. government deported Abrego Garcia and following a Supreme Court order and mounting pressure to return him.

Abrego Garcia's lawyers told a judge Friday that some government witnesses cooperated to get favors regarding their immigration status or criminal charges they were facing. A federal agent acknowledged during his testimony that one witness was living in the U.S. illegally with a criminal record and is now getting preferred status.

“He sounds like the exact type of person this government should be trying to deport,” Federal Public Defender Dumaka Shabazz said. “They’re going to give all these other people deals to stay in the country just to get this one other person.”

Most of Friday's hearing focused on whether Abrego Garcia should be released as he awaits trial. U.S. Magistrate Judge Barbara Holmes said she will write her decision “sooner rather than later.”

The smuggling charges stem from a 2022 traffic stop for speeding in Tennessee during which Abrego Garcia was driving a vehicle with nine passengers. While officers suspected possible smuggling, Abrego Garcia was allowed to go on his way with only a warning.

Body camera footage shows a calm exchange between officers and Abrego Garcia. The officers then discussed among themselves their suspicions of smuggling before letting him go. One of the officers says, “He’s hauling these people for money.” Another says Abrego Garcia had $1,400 in an envelope.

The federal indictment accuses Abrego Garcia of smuggling throughout the U.S. hundreds of people living in the country illegally, including children and members of the violent MS-13 gang.

In briefings before Friday's hearing, U.S. attorneys described Abrego Garcia as a danger to the community and a flight risk. They also accused him of trafficking drugs and firearms and of abusing the women he transported, among other claims, although he is not charged with such crimes.

Rob McGuire, Acting U.S. Attorney for the Middle District of Tennessee, told the judge Friday that “migrant transportation is inherently dangerous.”

The prosecutor also presented two orders of protection that Abrego Garcia’s wife sought in 2020 and 2021 against him for domestic violence. Jennifer Vasquez Sura said this spring that the couple had worked things out “privately as a family, including by going to counseling.”

Abrego Garcia's attorneys rejected the prosecution's assertions that he was a danger, while arguing the charges aren’t serious enough for detention.

“If Mr. Abrego Garcia is so dangerous, this violent MS-13 guy, why did they wait almost three years to indict him on this?” Shabazz asked the judge. “Why wait until literally after the Supreme Court told them they denied him due process and they had to bring him back before they investigate him?”

Friday's proceeding included testimony from a Department of Homeland Security agent who quoted three unnamed witnesses who spoke to a grand jury about Abrego Garcia’s alleged actions.

Special agent Peter Joseph said that the witnesses saw Abrego Garcia trafficking people, guns or drugs and that Abrego Garcia earned upwards of $100,000 a year. One man said Abrego Garcia was sexually inappropriate towards underage girls, Joseph testified, while a woman said Abrego Garcia had solicited nude photos of her when she was 15 and she believed he was in the MS-13 gang.

During cross-examination, Abrego Garcia’s attorneys raised questions about possible conflicts of interest. One man had been convicted of a felony and was previously deported. He also was serving a 30-month sentence when investigators contacted him, Joseph acknowledged. That witness is now living in a halfway house and on his way to getting work authorization.

The second man is a very close relative of the first witness and “said he would help in return for his release from jail,” said Richard Tennent, an assistant federal public defender. A third witness had previously been compensated for her work with law enforcement.

Tennent said one of the witnesses told investigators that Abrego Garcia would drive roundtrip between Maryland and Houston — nearly 24 hours each way — two or three times per week. The witness said Abrego Garcia usually had two of his children and his wife with him.

Tennent pointed out that Abrego Garcia has three children, two of whom are autistic.

Abrego Garcia is a citizen of El Salvador who had been living in the United States for more than a decade before he was deported. The expulsion violated a 2019 U.S. immigration judge’s order that shielded him from deportation to his native country because he likely faced gang persecution there.

Before Friday’s hearing began in Nashville, Abrego Garcia’s wife told a crowd outside a church that Thursday marked three months since the Trump administration “abducted and disappeared my husband and separated him from our family.”

Her voice choked with emotion, Vasquez Sura said she saw her husband for the first time Thursday. She said, “Kilmar wants you to have faith."

The decision to charge Abrego Garcia criminally prompted the resignation of Ben Schrader, who was chief of the criminal division at the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Middle District of Tennessee. He declined to comment when reached by The Associated Press last week. However, a person familiar with the matter who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss a personnel matter confirmed the connection.

This story has been corrected to show the Trump administration said that the human smuggling operation transported immigrants across the country, not that it brought immigrants into the country illegally.

Finley reported from Norfolk, Va.

Tiki Osiris holds a sign as protesters gather outside the Federal Courthouse before arguments whether Kilmar Abrego Garcia can be released from jail on Friday, June 13, 2025 in Nashville, Tenn. (AP Photo/George Walker IV)

Jennifer Vasquez Sura, wife of Kilmar Abrego Garcia, center, is escorted out of the Federal Courthouse on Friday, June 13, 2025, in Nashville, Tenn. (AP Photo/George Walker IV)

Protesters gather outside the Federal Courthouse before arguments about whether Kilmar Abrego Garcia can be released from jail on Friday, June 13, 2025 in Nashville, Tenn. (AP Photo/George Walker IV)

Protesters gather outside the Federal Courthouse before arguments whether Kilmar Abrego Garcia can be released from jail on Friday, June 13, 2025 in Nashville, Tenn. (AP Photo/George Walker IV)

Natalie Schilling, Sydney Blocker gather outside the Federal Courthouse before arguments whether Kilmar Abrego Garcia can be released from jail on Friday, June 13, 2025 in Nashville, Tenn. (AP Photo/George Walker IV)

Protesters gather outside the Federal Courthouse before arguments about whether Kilmar Abrego Garcia can be released from jail on Friday, June 13, 2025 in Nashville, Tenn. (AP Photo/George Walker IV)

Department of Homeland Security police officers stand as protesters gather outside the Federal Courthouse before arguments whether Kilmar Abrego Garcia can be released from jail on Friday, June 13, 2025 in Nashville, Tenn. (AP Photo/George Walker IV)

Protesters gather outside the Federal Courthouse before arguments about whether Kilmar Abrego Garcia can be released from jail on Friday, June 13, 2025 in Nashville, Tenn. (AP Photo/George Walker IV)

Jennifer, wife of Kilmar Abrego Garcia, enters the Federal Courthouse on Friday, June 13, 2025 in Nashville, Tenn. (AP Photo/George Walker IV)

LAS VEGAS (AP) — With the start of the New Year squarely behind us, it's once again time for the annual CES trade show to shine a spotlight on the latest tech companies plan on offering in 2026.

The multi-day event, organized by the Consumer Technology Association, kicks off this week in Las Vegas, where advances across industries like robotics, healthcare, vehicles, wearables, gaming and more are set to be on display.

Artificial intelligence will be anchored in nearly everything, again, as the tech industry explores offerings consumers will want to buy. AI industry heavyweight Jensen Huang will be taking the stage to showcase Nvidia's latest productivity solutions, and AMD CEO Lisa Su will keynote to “share her vision for delivering future AI solutions.” Expect AI to come up in other keynotes, like from Lenovo's CEO, Yuanqing Yang.

The AI industry is out in full force tackling issues in healthcare, with a particular emphasis on changing individual health habits to treat conditions — such as Beyond Medicine's prescription app focused on a particular jaw disorder — or addressing data shortages in subjects such as breast milk production.

Expect more unveils around domestic robots too. Korean tech giant LG already has announced it will show off a helper bot named “ CLOiD,” which allegedly will handle a range of household tasks. Hyundai also is announcing a major push on robotics and manufacturing advancements. Extended reality, basically a virtual training ground for robots and other physical AI, is also in the buzz around CES.

In 2025, more than 141,000 attendees from over 150 countries, regions, and territories attended the CES. Organizers expect around the same numbers for this year’s show, with more than 3,500 exhibitors across the floor space this week.

The AP spoke with CTA Executive Chair and CEO Gary Shapiro about what to expect for CES 2026. The conversation has been edited for clarity and length.

Well, we have a lot at this year's show.

Obviously, using AI in a way that makes sense for people. We’re seeing a lot in robotics. More robots and humanoid-looking robots than we’ve ever had before.

We also see longevity in health, there’s a lot of focus on that. All sorts of wearable devices for almost every part of the body. Technology is answering healthcare’s gaps very quickly and that’s great for everyone.

Mobility is big with not only self-driving vehicles but also with boats and drones and all sorts of other ways of getting around. That’s very important.

And of course, content creation is always very big.

You are seeing humanoid robots right now. It sometimes works, sometimes doesn’t.

But yes, there are more and more humanoid robots. And when we talk about CES 5, 10, 15, 20 years now, we’re going to see an even larger range of humanoid robots.

Obviously, last year we saw a great interest in them. The number one product of the show was a little robotic dog that seems so life-like and fun, and affectionate for people that need that type of affection.

But of course, the humanoid robots are just one aspect of that industry. There’s a lot of specialization in robot creation, depending on what you want the robot to do. And robots can do many things that humans can’t.

AI is the future of creativity.

Certainly AI itself may be arguably creative, but the human mind is so unique that you definitely get new ideas that way. So I think the future is more of a hybrid approach, where content creators are working with AI to craft variations on a theme or to better monetize what they have to a broader audience.

We’re seeing all sorts of different devices that are implementing AI. But we have a special focus at this show, for the first time, on the disability community. Verizon set this whole stage up where we have all different ways of taking this technology and having it help people with disabilities and older people.

Well, there’s definitely no bubble when it comes to what AI can do. And what AI can do is perform miracles and solve fundamental human problems in food production and clean air and clean water. Obviously in healthcare, it’s gonna be overwhelming.

But this was like the internet itself. There was a lot of talk about a bubble, and there actually was a bubble. The difference is that in late 1990s there were basically were no revenue models. Companies were raising a lot of money with no plans for revenue.

These AI companies have significant revenues today, and companies are investing in it.

What I’m more concerned about, honestly, is not Wall Street and a bubble. Others can be concerned about that. I’m concerned about getting enough energy to process all that AI. And at this show, for the first time, we have a Korean company showing the first ever small-scale nuclear-powered energy creation device. We expect more and more of these people rushing to fill this gap because we need the energy, we need it clean and we need a kind of all-of-the-above solution.

A Coro breastfeeding monitor is pictured at a Coroflo booth during the CES Unveiled tech show Sunday, Jan. 4, 2026, in Las Vegas. (AP Photo/Abbie Parr)

Yonbo X1 robots are pictured at the X-Orgin booth during the CES Unveiled tech show Sunday, Jan. 4, 2026, in Las Vegas. (AP Photo/Abbie Parr)

A Tombot robotic puppy is pictured at a Tombot booth during the CES Unveiled tech show Sunday, Jan. 4, 2026, in Las Vegas. (AP Photo/Abbie Parr)

People arrive at the CES Unveiled tech show Sunday, Jan. 4, 2026, in Las Vegas. (AP Photo/Abbie Parr)