The story that the father of two was a peaceful illegal immigrant who didn’t deserve to live in El Salvador’s mega-prison was shattered on Wednesday when new evidence surfaced that allegedly linked the “Maryland man” deported by the Trump administration to a gang of human traffickers.

Kilmar Abrego Garcia, 26, was present at a 2022 traffic stop when state police suspected him of transporting seven other people in an SUV from Texas to Maryland and other locations across the nation, according to a ground-breaking report released by the Tennessee Star last week. Amazingly, FBI agents told the Tennessee officers to release Garcia and the others from the scene.

The car that was stopped now seems to have been connected to a human smuggling organization in the past.

According to documents examined by Just The News, Abrego Garcia was operating a black 2001 Chevrolet Suburban that had been listed by a Baltimore investigative team within the U.S. Department of Homeland Security as being owned by a suspect involved in a human trafficking ring that agents were pursuing.

The HSI Baltimore target uses the vehicle in a human trafficking and smuggling operation. To pick up non-citizens, the vehicle travels to the southern border, according to the record. According to the memo, if the car is found, the investigators should be notified.

According to court documents examined by the outlet, Jose Ramon Hernandez Reyes, the owner of the car Abrego Gracia claimed to be working for at the time, had previously entered a guilty plea to charges of smuggling illegal immigrants into the United States.

Hernandez Reyes, who was also in the United States illegally, was found guilty in 2020 and given an 18-month sentence. In March 2021, as his sentence was coming to an end, DHS issued a “deport” order.

Abrego Garcia and the Hernandez Reyes who was sentenced are the same person, according to a DHS source who spoke to the outlet. However, reporters were unable to confirm whether Abrego Garcia actually worked for Hernandez Reyes as he claimed.

According to Justice Department officials, some of the people inside the SUV, including those from Mexico, El Salvador, and Honduras, had previously been deported from the United States and had returned illegally during the traffic stop. After driving erratically and having an expired driver’s license, Abrego Garcia was pulled over and fined.

Because there was no luggage in the car, officers suspected the passengers were being smuggled, according to their report.

According to court documents made public by U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi, Abrego Garcia was previously arrested in 2019 along with a group of men who “freely admitted to being citizens and nationals of El Salvador by birth and that they were present in the United States illegally.” Two courts have upheld Prince George’s County’s prior confirmation that Abrego Garcia is a member of the violent MS-13 gang.

The first lawmaker to visit Abrego Garcia in El Salvador’s mega-prison, where he was sent after being picked up by immigration officials in March, was U.S. Senator Chris Van Hollen. Following accusations by left-wing activists and mainstream media that the administration disregarded a judge’s order and deported him anyway, interest in his case has skyrocketed. On Sunday, a delegation of U.S. House Democrats arrived in El Salvador with the intention of monitoring the circumstances surrounding Abrego Garcia’s detention.