According to a new report from the Washington Post, Secretary of State Marco Rubio made a secret agreement with the president of El Salvador to hand over legally protected U.S. “informants,” so the Trump administration could deport hundreds of Venezuelan immigrants to the notoriously brutal prison, CECOT.
Rubio’s backroom deal undermined years of work from an ongoing U.S. investigation aimed at apprehending high-ranking members of MS-13, one of the world’s most violent gangs.
Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele agreed to the deal, on the condition that MS-13 gang members Bukele wanted imprisoned in his jail were actually “informants” protected by the Department of Justice.
Rubio agreed to speak with AG Pam Bondi, who would agree to terminate the informants’ cooperation agreements and their protections.
Bukele held up his end of the bargain, effectively acting as a brutal pass-through for Venezuelan deportees from the U.S.
Bukele also would be rewarded with access to individuals who threatened to expose his own secret deals with MS-13, deals that helped lower El Salvador’s violent crime rate, and upheld his notorious reputation as a “cool dictator.” At least three of those men reportedly had disclosed details about Bukele’s dealings.
But only one of the nine men Bukele demanded were sent to El Salvador.
Officials fear that the U.S. reneging on protections for its own informants could cripple ongoing investigations—and make future cooperation with informants far less likely.
Former DOJ officials say the Trump administration blowing up gang activity cases after years of work to gain the trust of informants would be very frustrating.