In a political saga that’s as tangled as it is consequential, recent investigations have shed new light on a controversial deal struck between the Trump administration and El Salvador’s President Nayib Bukele. At the heart of the matter: the fate of nine notorious MS-13 gang leaders, some of whom had been cooperating with U.S. law enforcement as informants, and a U.S. effort to find a destination for migrants deported from Venezuelan backgrounds. The fallout has not only upended a high-profile federal case into the MS-13 gang, but also raised serious questions about the credibility of American promises to its informants and the broader fight against transnational crime.
According to The Washington Post and NPR, the arrangement began with a request from the Trump administration to use El Salvador’s infamous CECOT megaprison as a holding facility for Venezuelan deportees. In exchange, President Bukele demanded the return of nine Salvadoran gang leaders, several of whom were under U.S. Justice Department protection as informants in ongoing investigations into MS-13’s criminal operations both in the United States and abroad.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio, acting on President Trump’s directive, agreed to Bukele’s terms. On a phone call recounted by The Washington Post, Rubio assured Bukele that he would receive the men, even though some were informants. Rubio explained that Attorney General Pam Bondi would terminate the informant relationship, stripping them of the protective status they had been promised by the U.S. government. As John Hudson, a reporter for The Washington Post, told NPR, “A core part of an informant relationship is that the United States says, you know, if you give us some information, we’re not going to turn around and send you to the very government that you are giving us information about. That just doesn’t happen.”
This assurance, or rather, this betrayal—as it has been described by current and former Justice Department officials—sent shockwaves through the law enforcement community. The U.S. task force investigating MS-13 had spent years securing indictments against more than a dozen gang members, including high-ranking leaders. Many of these individuals had inside knowledge of an alleged deal between the Bukele government and MS-13 to reduce homicides in El Salvador in exchange for leniency—a deal that, if substantiated, would undermine Bukele’s internationally touted tough-on-crime reputation.
Why would Bukele want these particular nine men? As The Washington Post and Wonkette reported, some of these gang leaders not only knew about the alleged government-gang negotiations but were also in positions to testify about them. One informant had even secured a formal plea agreement with U.S. prosecutors. The Salvadoran government has a documented history of making deals with gangs to reduce violence—an arrangement that has been credited with a historic drop in homicide rates but criticized for its murky ethics and potential to empower criminal organizations.
Rubio’s promise to Bukele, and the subsequent actions of the Department of Justice, have had immediate and far-reaching consequences. In March 2025, federal prosecutors moved to deport one of the informants, asking a court to dismiss charges. According to The Washington Post, a judge blocked the deportation of another gang leader after the Justice Department’s actions raised suspicion. The fate of the remaining informants remains in limbo, with some still in U.S. custody and others fearing imminent return to El Salvador, where they could face torture or death.
The White House’s decision to prioritize the deportation campaign over the integrity of its criminal investigations has been sharply criticized. A U.S. contractor involved in the MS-13 investigation told The Washington Post that the administration’s actions amounted to “a deep betrayal of U.S. law enforcement.” The editorial board of The Washington Post echoed this sentiment, arguing that the deal squandered a critical opportunity to weaken one of the most notorious gangs in the Americas and undermined the United States’ ability to recruit informants in the future. “Why would other people cooperate with American officials if this is how the DOJ treats its informants?” the editorial asked pointedly.
The Trump administration has defended the deal, emphasizing the removal of hundreds of Venezuelan migrants—whom it accused of being affiliated with the Tren de Aragua gang—from U.S. soil. Officials have rejected the notion that the arrangement amounted to leniency toward MS-13, insisting that deporting the informants did not compromise the broader fight against the gang. Yet, as NPR reported, the decision has divided even those within the Justice Department, with some arguing that it has seriously undercut ongoing investigations and the United States’ credibility as a law enforcement partner.
The Salvadoran government has largely remained silent on the controversy. When pressed by NPR, officials did not respond to repeated requests for comment. However, a lobbyist representing El Salvador in the United States stated that Bukele was simply seeking the return of “MS-13 terrorists” to be brought to justice in their home country. Bukele himself has publicly denied negotiating with gangs, tweeting, “How can they put out such an obvious lie without anybody questioning it?” after the U.S. Treasury Department sanctioned two Salvadoran officials for their roles in alleged gang negotiations. Nevertheless, multiple news outlets and U.S. authorities have reported on the existence of such deals, and even tapes have reportedly surfaced to support these claims.
The controversy has exposed the complicated interplay between U.S. immigration policy, international law enforcement, and the political imperatives of both countries. For Trump, the deal with Bukele provided a destination for deportees at a time when other countries were reluctant to accept them. For Bukele, it offered a way to silence potential witnesses who could threaten his political standing and “cool dictator” image at home. And for Rubio—who, as Wonkette noted, was also serving as acting administrator of USAID and acting archivist at the National Archives—his involvement has drawn scrutiny over the potential misuse of U.S. aid and the management of sensitive government records.
Perhaps most troubling is the precedent this episode sets for future U.S. law enforcement efforts. As one observer put it, “It certainly ends however many cases the informants had been helping the government with, as they would not have been made informants if DOJ didn’t believe it needed their testimony. It flushes away years of investigative work.” The message to would-be informants is clear: the promises of protection made by the U.S. government are not ironclad.
As the story continues to unfold, the fate of the remaining MS-13 informants hangs in the balance, and the credibility of America’s justice system faces a test that will be watched far beyond the borders of El Salvador and the United States.
