One of the Venezuelan migrants deported to El Salvador last weekend was mistakenly identified as a gang member because of his tattoos, including one closely resembling the Real Madrid soccer club logo, his attorney has said.

In a court filing Wednesday night, Linette Tobin said her client, Jerce Reyes Barrios, 36, had fled his home country after he was tortured for taking part in anti-regime demonstrations last year. According to the filing, Reyes Barrios has no ties to Tren de Aragua (TdA), which the U.S. government alleges.

“The accusation is based on two things,” Tobin wrote. “First, he has a tattoo on his arm of a crown sitting atop a soccer ball with a rosary and the word ‘Dios’. DHS alleges that this tattoos is proof of his gang membership. In reality, he chose this tattoo because it is similar to he logo for his favorite soccer team Real Madrid.”

Newsweek reached out to the Department of State for comment via email Thursday morning. An ICE official said the agency was using a variety of tools to identify and stop activity by known Foreign Terrorist Organizations (FTOs).

Why It Matters

The Trump administration has been reluctant to release the names and other details of the groups flown to El Salvador over the weekend, despite questions from a judge hearing challenges to the removal flights that were brought by groups including the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU). The White House argues that all those removed posed enough of a national security threat to be deported under the Alien Enemies Act.

What To Know

According to his attorney, Reyes Barrios marched in two demonstrations against Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro in February and March 2024. At the second, he was detained and tortured with electric shocks and suffocation.

Once he was released, the soccer coach fled to the U.S., entering with a CBP One app appointment at the border. He was detained at the Otay Mesa Detention Facility, pending a court appearance. That hearing, which would have decided whether he was granted asylum or not, was scheduled for April 17.

Reyes Barrios was accused by DHS of having tattoos resembling those seen on known TdA members, including the art resembling the Spanish team Real Madrid’s logo. Agents also searched his social media profile, finding him making a hand gesture which they allege is proof of gang membership, Tobin said.

“In fact, the gesture is a common one that means ‘I Love You’ in sign language and is commonly used as a rock-and-roll symbol,” the attorney said.

Tobin added that Reyes Barrios was given police clearance from Venezuela, and had multiple employment letters and a declaration from his tattoo artist about the designs in question. Those allowed him to be moved out of maximum security before he was transported to Texas on March 10 or 11, before the flight on Saturday.

“Counsel and family have lost all contact with him and have no information regarding his whereabouts or condition,” Tobin’s court filing says.

Reyes Barrios is one of the few named individuals known to have been deported under the Alien Enemies Act, a 227-year-old law only previously used during wartime to expedite the removal of immigrants. The Trump administration has not made it clear how many individuals were on board two planes which left around the time a U.S. District Court judge sought to ban the move.

Multiple testimonies were filed to Judge Boasberg on Wednesday night, alongside Tobin’s, describing lost contact between immigrants and their loved ones and counsel.

What People Are Saying

An ICE spokesperson told Newsweek in a statement: “ICE conducts investigations that target gang leadership, members, and associates in the United States and abroad. ICE uses its broad legal authorities to prevent transnational gangs from growing. We partner with domestic and international law enforcement agencies to identify and trace gangs’ activities. Together, we determine the best legal authorities to use to arrest criminals, seize gangs’ illicit proceeds and help victims.

All aliens in violation of U.S. immigration law may be subject to arrest, detention and, if found removable by final order or other legal means, removal from the United States regardless of nationality.”

Lee Gelernt, lead counsel at the American Civil Liberties Union, in a statement previously shared with Newsweek: “The Trump administration’s intent to use a wartime authority for immigration enforcement is as unprecedented as it is lawless. It may be the administration’s most extreme measure yet, and that is saying a lot.”

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, in a statement Sunday: “Under the President’s direction, his administration invoked the Alien Enemies Act to initiate the removal of hundreds of dangerous members of Tren de Aragua (TdA), a vicious and violent Foreign Terrorist Organization (FTO), which has been threatening our nation, conducting irregular warfare, and terrorizing Americans.”

What’s Next

Judge Boasberg gave the Justice Department a deadline of noon Thursday to provide details on those on board the removal flights. As of publication, a hearing was set to take place in Washington, D.C. to determine whether the Trump administration defied his order halting the flights.