More than 200 alleged ‘Venezuelan gang members’ were sent to CECOT
President Donald Trump was accused of defying a court order as he flew more than 200 alleged ‘Venezuelan gang members’ to CECOT, a notoriously violent ‘mega-prison’ in El Salvador.
U.S. District Judge James E. Boasberg issued a last-minute order on Saturday (March 15) to temporarily halt the deportations, but the Trump administration responded that the planes were already in the air. In a dramatic turn, the judge verbally commanded for them to be turned around.
His orders, however, were ignored. Adding fuel to the fire, El Salvador’s President, Nayib Bukele, took to Twitter to mock the situation. Responding to a post about Trump defying court orders, he sarcastically wrote, “Oopsie… Too late.”
Despite the controversy, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt pushed back, insisting that Trump and his administration “did not refuse to comply with a court order.”
Meanwhile, a new court filing from senior Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) official Robert Cerna has stirred further debate. He admitted that “many” of those deported had no prior convictions but defended the removals by arguing that a lack of specific information about each individual actually underscores the risk they pose.
“It demonstrates that they are terrorists with regard to whom we lack a complete profile,” Cerna claimed, justifying the administration’s aggressive stance. The deportations stem from Trump’s attempt to invoke an 18th-century wartime declaration as a legal basis for removing alleged gang members.
As Cerna’s filing urged Judge Boasberg to reverse his initial ruling, global backlash mounted. Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro fiercely condemned the move, accusing the Trump administration of labeling innocent Venezuelan teens—some as young as 14—as terrorists to justify their deportation.
“They have been considered criminals simply for being Venezuelan,” Maduro declared on Sunday (March 16), warning of a “threat of kidnapping” under Trump’s immigration policies.
Taking to social media, El Salvador’s President Nayib Bukele proudly announced the arrival of the deportees, framing it as a strategic move to bolster his nation’s security.
“Today, the first 238 members of the Venezuelan criminal organization, Tren de Aragua, arrived in our country,” Bukele wrote. “They were immediately transferred to CECOT, the Terrorism Confinement Center, for a period of one year (renewable).”
He went on to highlight the financial burden, noting that while the U.S. would pay a “very low fee” for their detainment, the cost to El Salvador would be far greater.
However, Bukele positioned the move as part of a long-term strategy. “Over time, these actions—combined with the production already being generated by more than 40,000 inmates engaged in various workshops and labor under the Zero Idleness program—will help make our prison system self-sustainable. As of today, it costs $200 million per year.”
