Judge agrees to drop criminal case against Virginia man accused of being MS-13 gang leader

ALEXANDRIA, Va. — A Virginia federal judge granted the Justice Department's request Tuesday to dismiss the case against a Dale City man that the Trump administration insists is a "major leader" of the MS-13 gang. 

Henrry Villatoro Santos, 24, was charged in March with unlawful possession of firearms by someone in the country illegally after investigators said they found guns, ammunition, silencers and signs or marks of MS-13 association in his garage bedroom. 

Once the charges are dropped, the Trump administration said it will move forward with deporting Villatoro Santos to El Salvador. 

"This is clearly a political decision," defense Attorney Muhammad Elsayed said about the Trump administration's decision to deport his client. 

Elsayed said he is concerned that his client will be placed on a flight to the Central American country before he can defend his case to stay in the U.S. through legal avenues. Court filings indicate that Villatoro Santos is an undocumented immigrant from El Salvador. 

Elsayed also cited the case of the Maryland father, Kilmar Abrego Garcia, who was mistakenly deported to a notorious Salvadoran prison following MS-13 gang allegations. Attorneys for Abrego Garcia have denied the gang allegations against the Prince George's father of three. Attorney Lucia Curiel, who represented Abrego Garcia in 2019, said an immigration judge cleared her client of the gang allegations and granted him protection from deportation to El Salvador due to the danger that gangs posed for the Prince George's County father.

The U.S. Supreme Court has ordered the Trump administration to facilitate the return of Abrego Garcia after admitting that his deportation was due to an administrative error.  However, the White House insists that the Trump administration is not obligated to 'effectuate' his return and that they have no power over his release because Abrego Garcia is under the custody of the government of El Salvador at the notorious prison CECOT. 

On Monday, the President of El Salvador Nayib Bukele told reporters during a meeting with President Donald Trump in the White House that he will not release Abrego Garcia. 

“The question is preposterous. How can I smuggle a terrorist into the United States?” Bukele said. “I don't have the power to return him to the United States."

Judge William Fitzpatrick decided his ruling will not go into effect until Friday at 9 a.m., which gives Elsayed three days to explore legal options to keep Villatoro Santos in the country. Until then, he will remain in federal custody. 

Villatoro Santos' family has denied the gang allegations and prosecutors have not presented further evidence into the alleged gang involvement. 

A hearing on the Villatoro Santos case is scheduled for Friday at 10 a.m. in Alexandria federal court.