Democratic U.S. Rep. Robert Garcia of California traveled to El Salvador on Monday alongside three Democratic colleagues to demand the return of unlawfully deported immigrants — including a gay Venezuelan asylum-seeker, Andry José Hernández Romero, whose whereabouts remain unknown after being secretly transferred to one of the world’s harshest prisons.
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In a letter delivered the same day to Secretary of State Marco Rubio and U.S. Ambassador William Duncan, Garcia and Reps. Maxwell Frost of Florida, Yassamin Ansari of Arizona, and Maxine Dexter of Oregon urged the Trump administration to confirm Hernández Romero’s safety and grant members of Congress or his legal counsel access to conduct a welfare check inside El Salvador’s infamous CECOT prison, which critics have called a concentration camp or gulag.
The group met in person with the U.S. Embassy in San Salvador after House Republicans denied their request for an official congressional delegation.
In an interview with The Advocate Tuesday afternoon, Garcia, who is gay, said that U.S. officials had considered his request.
“They did respond to us that they did make an official request to get a proof of life and health and wellness check, which they’d never done before,” Garcia said. “So it was the first. We were able to secure that — at least they’re now asking for it.”
Hernández Romero, 31, had no criminal history and entered the United States legally through the CBP One app to seek asylum from political persecution and anti-LGBTQ+ violence. According to his attorney, he passed a credible fear interview while detained in California and was awaiting a court hearing when he abruptly disappeared from ICE custody.
Related: Gay asylum-seeker's lawyer worries for the makeup artist's safety in Salvadoran ‘hellhole’ prison
His legal team later identified him in footage shared by Salvadoran authorities, showing shackled Venezuelan men being marched into the Centro de Confinamiento del Terrorismo.
According to the lawmakers’ April 21 letter, the only “evidence” used to justify his removal was two tattoos — crowns bearing the names of his parents. A former police officer working for CoreCivic, the private prison firm operating Otay Mesa Detention Center, claimed the tattoos indicated gang affiliation.
“He clearly was scared for his life because he was gay,” Garcia said. “And then we picked him up and sent him to this horrific prison. He hasn’t had any access to his family or legal counsel or really anyone.”
The man who made the gang allegation, Charles Cross Jr., is a former Milwaukee police officer with a history of misconduct, including a criminal conviction and DUI crash that led to his firing. Despite that record, he was hired by CoreCivic and was working at the Otay Mesa ICE facility when he flagged Hernández Romero.
Related: Robert Garcia demands answers in case of gay Venezuelan migrant deported to El Salvador prison
In a letter sent April 17 to ICE Acting Director Tae Johnson, Garcia demanded answers about how a private contractor could trigger deportation in violation of federal court orders — and whether ICE conducted any independent review. “We urge ICE to provide transparency and accountability in this matter to uphold the integrity of our immigration system and protect the rights of asylum seekers,” Garcia wrote.
In a separate letter on April 17 to CoreCivic CEO Damon Hininger, Garcia asked why someone with Cross’s disciplinary history was given authority over immigration determinations. “Despite this, he was employed by CoreCivic and authorized to make determinations that directly impact individuals’ immigration status,” Garcia wrote.
Garcia's Monday letter to Rubio calls Hernández Romero’s deportation a direct violation of his constitutional rights and warns that his status as a gay man puts him at grave risk inside CECOT. The facility offers no phone access, visitation, or outside contact. Human Rights Watch reports LGBTQ+ people in El Salvador regularly face torture and abuse — often at the hands of security forces.
Garcia and the lawmakers are asking the State Department to confirm Hernández Romero’s location, assess his health, ensure access to legal representation, and brief Congress on any agreements between the Trump administration and El Salvador’s government related to these deportations.
“We also know that there’s a contract between El Salvador and the United States, a financial one that’s been put in motion that we don’t have a copy of, that Donald Trump won’t release to the public,” Garcia said. “We have no idea what they’ve all agreed to.”
Garcia said the situation is growing more alarming by the day, particularly in light of the Trump administration’s continued use of the Alien Enemies Act to remove immigrants without hearings — even after the U.S. Supreme Court issued an emergency order blocking further deportations under the statute.
“Right now, Trump is still defying the Supreme Court,” Garcia told The Advocate. “He’s doubling down on the idea that Andry is not coming back when the Supreme Court is saying that he should.”
Garcia also rejected Trump’s claim that the U.S. doesn’t have time to process every asylum-seeker’s case.
“You don’t get to decide that someone doesn’t get due process,” he said. “That’s not the way our entire legal system is designed or built. Whether you are a citizen, a non-citizen, a student visa holder, or a temporary resident — everyone gets due process in the country. It’s foundational to the United States.”
The congressional delegation has made clear that their efforts extend beyond Hernández Romero. In both their letter and in statements this week, the lawmakers expressed alarm over the broader mass deportations — and what they say is a dangerous erosion of constitutional checks and balances.
“This is an emergency moment,” Garcia told The Advocate. “We have to highlight his case and make sure people know.”
The Advocate contacted the State Department for comment. A spokesperson said, “We do not comment on Congressional correspondence or on private diplomatic discussions, and have nothing further to share at this time.”
