Dems Favorite Illegal Alien ‘Maryland Dad’ Could be Facing the Death Penalty [WATCH]

A federal grand jury in Tennessee has indicted Kilmar Abrego Garcia on charges of alien smuggling and conspiracy, alleging he played a major role in a transnational human smuggling operation that spanned nearly ten years.

One former federal prosecutor has stated that if authorities uncover sufficient evidence linking him to a deadly incident involving over 50 migrant deaths, Abrego Garcia could face death penalty-eligible charges.

The indictment, handed down earlier this month, identifies Abrego Garcia as having a “significant role” in a network that allegedly transported illegal immigrants from El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Ecuador, and Mexico into the United States for “profit and private financial gain.”

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At a press conference following the indictment, Attorney General Pam Bondi characterized Abrego Garcia as a full-time human smuggler who carried out more than 100 smuggling trips across the United States.

Bondi stated that among those he transported were women, children, and individuals affiliated with the violent MS-13 gang.

The case centers around a particularly deadly incident during one of the alleged smuggling operations.

According to the indictment, a tractor trailer carrying over 150 migrants, operated by co-conspirators of Abrego Garcia, overturned.

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The crash resulted in the deaths of more than 50 migrants and left numerous others injured.

Former Assistant U.S. Attorney Neama Rahmani told Fox News Digital that the incident could serve as grounds for federal prosecutors to pursue the death penalty, depending on the evidence and charges pursued by the Department of Justice.

“Even if Abrego Garcia wasn’t in the vehicle, as long as he’s a co-conspirator, they could potentially seek the death penalty,” Rahmani said.

“The classic law school example is this: You and a co-conspirator rob a bank. Your co-conspirator shoots someone during that robbery. Prosecutors can seek the death penalty even though you’re not the one who actually pulled the trigger.”

Rahmani emphasized that intent to kill is not required in such a case.

“Prosecutors don’t have to prove that Abrego Garcia intended to cause any injuries or even intended to hurt anyone. As long as they can show that he intended to smuggle people into the United States and a death resulted, that’s enough,” he explained.

He added that although the fatal crash occurred in Mexico, its connection to a U.S.-bound smuggling operation could still satisfy legal grounds for prosecution under U.S. law.

“If the Justice Department can prove that Abrego Garcia was involved in the alien smuggling death, even though the death occurred in Mexico, as long as the intention was to bring those individuals to the United States, that may appropriately be a death penalty case,” Rahmani said.

Legal standards in such cases require prosecutors to establish knowledge of the smuggling scheme, intent to carry it out, and a resulting death as a consequence of the conspiracy.

“Prosecutors just have to prove knowledge and intent of the smuggling operation as well as causation. The death resulted therefrom. That’s enough for a death penalty case,” Rahmani stated.

Although the legal path to the death penalty exists in cases like this, Rahmani acknowledged that such a penalty is rarely pursued by the Department of Justice in smuggling prosecutions.

However, the scale and consequences of this incident may prompt a different outcome.

The investigation into Abrego Garcia and his alleged co-conspirators remains ongoing. If convicted on the current charges, Abrego Garcia already faces significant prison time.

Whether federal prosecutors ultimately pursue capital charges will depend on how the case develops and whether the Department of Justice decides the available evidence supports such action.

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