**Spanish-Language Journalist Mario Guevara Deported to El Salvador After Months in Immigration Detention**
ATLANTA (AP) — Mario Guevara, a Spanish-language journalist who had been held in immigration detention in Georgia since June, was deported on Friday to El Salvador.
Guevara, 48, was covering a protest just outside Atlanta on June 14 when local police arrested him. Several days later, he was turned over to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). Since his detention, Guevara’s lawyers have been fighting parallel legal battles in both immigration and federal courts, seeking his release.
In a live video posted on Facebook Friday afternoon, Guevara is seen being escorted by El Salvador government officials. He exits a vehicle and embraces a woman filming the moment on her phone.
“Hello, Mom,” he says. Looking toward the sky, he adds, “My country, my country, my country. Thank God. This isn’t how I wanted to come to my country, but thank God.”
Guevara’s deportation follows a decision by the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals on Wednesday, which declined to put a hold on a deportation order issued last month by the Board of Immigration Appeals.
All criminal charges filed against Guevara since his arrest were dismissed by local prosecutors. His attorneys have argued that his detention was retaliatory—aimed at silencing his journalism work and violating his constitutional rights.
Having fled El Salvador two decades ago due to fear for his safety, Guevara built a large following as a journalist in the Atlanta area. He worked for Mundo Hispanico, a Spanish-language newspaper, for many years before launching a digital news outlet called MG News about a year ago.
He was livestreaming video from a “No Kings” rally protesting the Trump administration when police arrested him in DeKalb County. Guevara was known for arriving at scenes where ICE or other law enforcement agencies were active, often based on tips from community members, and regularly streamed live updates on social media.
Video of his arrest shows him wearing a bright red shirt beneath a vest marked “PRESS.” He told a police officer, “I’m a member of the media, officer,” as he stood on a sidewalk with other journalists. There was no indication of large crowds or confrontations nearby at the time.
Following his arrest, charges against him in DeKalb County and Gwinnett County were dropped by prosecutors. An immigration judge granted Guevara bond in July, but he remained in custody while the government appealed the bond decision.
An earlier immigration case from 2012 had denied Guevara permission to remain in the U.S. He appealed that ruling to the Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA), but the appeal remained undecided when prosecutors administratively closed the case.
Guevara’s lawyers contend he has been authorized to live and work in the U.S. for the last 13 years.
Shortly after he entered ICE custody, the government requested the BIA to reopen his old immigration case. Guevara’s attorneys did not oppose reopening but asked that the case be sent back to the lower immigration court because he has a pending visa application supported by his adult U.S. citizen son.
Last month, the BIA agreed to reopen the case but dismissed Guevara’s appeal and denied his request to return the case to the lower court. It also ordered his deportation to El Salvador and dismissed the government’s appeal of the bond ruling as moot.
Guevara’s legal team appealed to the 11th Circuit, seeking to halt the deportation order while the appeal was pending. They argue that both the BIA ruling and the 11th Circuit’s refusal to stay his deportation are based on incorrect information.
A separate federal court case challenging the constitutionality of Guevara’s detention is still pending. His lawyers have argued that he is being punished for his journalism and have asked a judge to order his immediate release and halt his deportation while the case proceeds.
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Associated Press writer Elliot Spagat contributed to this report.
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