WP: "U.S. Secretary of State Handed Over Informants in Exchange for El Salvador Prison Access"

In Exchange for Prison Space to Hold Undocumented Immigrants
U.S. Agrees to Repatriate Senior MS-13 Members
Key Informants Who Provided Critical Intelligence Also Included

Marco Rubio, United States Secretary of State. Photo by Reuters Yonhap News

It has been revealed that United States Secretary of State Marco Rubio agreed to abandon secret informants under U.S. government protection in negotiations with El Salvador President Nayib Bukele, in exchange for securing prison space for the deportation of undocumented immigrants.

The Washington Post reported on the 19th (local time) that Secretary Rubio, during a phone call with President Bukele on March 13, promised to comply with Bukele's request to forcibly repatriate nine senior members of the criminal organization MS-13 who were detained by the U.S. government.

Secretary Rubio is also said to have promised, in consultation with Attorney General Pam Bondi, to lift protection measures for these informants.

Among the nine individuals designated for forced repatriation by President Bukele, at least three were informants who had agreed to cooperate and provide information or evidence to U.S. authorities under the U.S. government's witness protection program during the investigation process.

These informants had provided information and evidence indicating that senior officials in the Bukele administration protected criminal organizations while cooperating with investigations by the U.S. Department of Justice. If forcibly repatriated to their home country, they face a very high risk of retaliation.

One of the identified informants, Cesar Lopez Larios, had his deportation process initiated two days before the phone call, and was deported to El Salvador on March 15, just two days after the call-a total of only four days. The remaining eight individuals sought for deportation, including two more informants, are still in the United States.

Among those Bukele demanded for forced repatriation is Vladimir Arevalo Chavez, nicknamed "Vampiro." The Trump administration began deportation proceedings for him in April of this year, but the court has temporarily halted the process.

According to the Washington Post, in a petition submitted to the court, he stated, "If I am forcibly deported, my life will be in grave danger," and added, "I will be tortured."

Information and evidence provided by the informants revealed that the Bukele administration, which gained popularity for its "gang crackdown," in fact protected criminal organizations and repeatedly met and negotiated with gang members imprisoned in El Salvador.

It was also revealed that, in order to boost approval ratings, the Bukele administration promised MS-13 to reduce the number of "public murders" so that crime rates, including the murder rate, would appear to decrease, and in return, agreed to ease prison conditions for incarcerated gang members.

Former and current officials of the U.S. Department of Justice strongly objected to this measure, calling it "an act of betraying the collaborators painstakingly secured over many years." Some investigators also criticized, saying, "Years of investigative efforts have come to nothing."

State Department spokesperson Tommy Pigott told the Washington Post, "The achievements of the Trump administration speak for themselves," adding, "MS-13 gang members have been prosecuted in both the United States and El Salvador, and as a result of these outstanding efforts, Americans are now safer."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.