The people of El Salvador lived in fear of gangs for decades. Then President Nayib Bukele decided enough was enough. What happened next was a miracle, and all it took was la mano dura: an iron first. The gangs disappeared—there one week and gone the next.

Abrego Garcia grew up in El Salvador’s capital city, San Salvador, according to court documents filed in U.S. immigration court in 2019. His father was a former police officer. His mother, Cecilia, sold pupusas, the nation’s signature dish of flat tortilla pouches that hold steaming blends of cheese, beans or savory pork.