Andry Hernandez, a Venezuelan asylum seeker, was sent to an El Salvadorian mega prison despite having no gang affiliation, his attorney said. Mekahlo Medina reports for the NBC4 News at 5 p.m. on Tuesday, March 25, 2025.
A Venezuelan asylum seeker, who fled his native country out of fear for his safety, was deported to El Salvador, his attorneys said.
Andry Hernandez, an outspoken critic of Venezuela's government who is also gay, sought asylum in the United States fearing persecution in his home country.
The 31-year-old was deported last weekend to an El Salvadorian mega prison, which the Trump administration claimed belongs to the Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua.
Hernandez’s attorney denied that Hernandez had any gang affiliation.
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“He is in fact a makeup artist,” said Melissa Shepard of the Immigrant Defenders Law Center. “The history of his photos provides background information for his love of the arts and absolutely no association with any type of gang.”
Shepard said that Hernandez came to the United States because he believed his life was at risk if he stayed in Venezuela.
Hernandez, who has no criminal history, came to the U.S. with an immigration appointment for asylum when he was first taken into custody, his attorneys said.
NBC Los Angeles was unable to independently confirm his attorney’s claims. U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement has not responded to our request for comment on this case.
The Trump administration last week invoked the rarely used Alien Enemies Act of 1798, which allows the president to deport non-citizens during wartime.
While some family members and attorneys said that some immigrants have been falsely accused and targeted because of their tattoos, Hernandez’s attorney said his decorative tattoos have sentimental meaning.
“Some of the tattoos he has are flowers and are dedicated to his parents,” Shepard said.
The attorney added Andry did not have final orders for deportation, and there will be no recourse for him to return to the U.S. to continue asylum hearings or return to his native Venezuela.
“They have not confirmed to us exactly where he is,” Shepard said. “They just told us he is in El Salvador.
The White House said in a statement to NBC News that it was “confident in the (Department of Homeland Security’s) intelligence assessments on these gang affiliations and criminality,” adding that the Venezuelan immigrants who were removed had final orders of deportation.
The Trump administration has not released evidence that those sent to El Salvador have criminal histories or gang ties.
