Washington DC - President Donald Trump's administration fessed up to mistakenly deporting a legal US resident due to what they claimed was "an administrative error."

According to The Atlantic, Kilmer Armado Abrego-Garcia of Maryland is currently being held at the Terrorism Confinement Center (CECOT) in El Salvador, the notorious mega-prison the Trump administration has been sending people accused of bring part of gangs – often purely on the basis of their tattoos.

But in a court filing on Monday, the administration admitted that US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents were "aware of his protection from removal to El Salvador," but said he was deported "because of an administrative error."

"This was an oversight, and the removal was carried out in good faith based on the existence of a final order of removal and Abrego-Garcia's purported membership in MS-13," the administration added.

Donald Trump Trump slams comedian Bill Maher ahead of White House visit

The filing was in response to a lawsuit brought forward by Abrego-Garcia's attorneys, who are demanding his return. The father of one – whose son has disabilities – came to the US when he was 16 years old after fleeing gang violence in El Salvador and has no criminal record.

Still, the Trump administration claims it cannot bring Abrego-Garcia back because he is now in Salvadoran custody.

Vice President JD Vance doubled down on slandering the falsely accused man, and criticized those getting "fired up" about gang members being deported "while ignoring citizens they victimize."