The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announced yesterday, April 30, 2025, the discovery of a second domestic abuse petition filed against Kilmar Abrego Garcia, the individual widely known as the “Maryland Dad.” This newly revealed filing dates back to 2020 and further illuminates a disturbing pattern of alleged violence perpetrated by Garcia, who has since been deported.
According to the DHS, the 2020 petition for protection was filed in the District Court of Maryland for Prince George’s County by Jennifer Vasquez, Garcia’s wife. In the sworn document dated August 3, 2020, Ms. Vasquez detailed a series of alarming incidents. These allegations include verbal abuse, kicking, slapping, shoving, and the mental abuse of her children, whom she claims Garcia locked in their bedroom while they cried.
The petition further alleges specific acts of violence in the months leading up to the filing. In November 2019, Ms. Vasquez stated that Garcia grabbed her by the hair while inside a vehicle. The following month, in December 2019, she claimed Garcia again grabbed her hair in a car, dragged her out of the vehicle, and abandoned her on the street. In January 2020, Ms. Vasquez alleged that Garcia broke her son’s tablet and damaged doors within their home. The pattern of violence purportedly continued into March 2020, with Ms. Vasquez claiming Garcia pushed her against a wall while destroying phones and televisions.
This 2020 petition predates a previously disclosed protection order filed by Ms. Vasquez against Garcia in 2021. In that later filing, she alleged physical assault, including bruising, punching, and scratching, as well as Garcia ripping her shirt.
READ: Border Czar Tom Homan Has 8 Questions For Democrats Who Traveled To See Abrego Garcia
Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin issued a strong statement regarding the new revelation. “The facts are clear: Kilmar Abrego Garcia is a violent illegal alien who abuses women and children. He had no business being in our country and we are proud to have deported this violent thug,” McLaughlin asserted. “We have now found two petitions for protection against him, in addition to the fact that he entered the country illegally and is a confirmed member of MS-13. Our country is safer with him gone.”
The DHS has previously disclosed other troubling aspects of Garcia’s background, including alleged involvement in a suspected human trafficking incident and confirmed membership in the violent MS-13 gang. The agency’s statement concluded with a pointed critique of media portrayals of Garcia. “Still, the media continues to call him a victim while ignoring the real victims: the women he battered, the children he terrorized, and the communities he endangered.”
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