'Information about this incident, including the identity of

Posted on: April 16, 2025 at 20:58:24 CT

Information about this incident, including the identity of the THP officer, the officer’s badge number, and the Computerized Dispatch Report code assigned to the incident, are all known to The Star, which is currently withholding this information.

Sources familiar with the Computerized Dispatch Report of the incident told The Star that the officer who filed the report confirmed that the seven individuals in the van were being transported from Texas to Maryland by Garcia.

Notably, it is a misdemeanor offense in the state of Tennessee to operate a motor vehicle without a valid driver’s license. Anyone convicted of this Class B misdemeanor faces up to six months in jail.

The officer who detained Garcia temporarily is well-respected within the Tennessee Highway Patrol, has served on a special interdiction team, and is based in a district located between Nashville and Knoxville, which includes Putnam County.

In response to Wednesday press inquiries from The Star, THP and the Tennessee Department of Safety and Homeland Security both confirmed receiving the communication, and that communications staff would send responses which did not arrive prior to press time.

A comment request by The Star to the FBI, seeking to confirm its instructions to THP, was not immediately answered.

The Star also contacted the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation (TBI), as the chief authority over human trafficking investigations in the state, to determine whether Abrego Garcia was released due to a TBI investigation, but did not receive an immediate response.

An inquiry to the Department of Homeland Security, which oversees federal human trafficking investigations, likewise went unanswered prior to press time."