Federal prosecutors on Thursday told a judge that the Trump administration will begin removal proceedings against Kilmar Abrego Garcia to deport him a country other than his native El Salvador if he is released from a Tennessee jail. 

When U.S. Magistrate Judge Paula Xinis asked about the timing of the removal: “30 seconds or 30 days or 30 months…,” a federal prosecutor answered that he could only say the removal was not “imminent.”

Xinis has scheduled a hearing on the matter for July 7. 

Meanwhile, the Trump administration maintains that Abrego Garcia was a member of the MS-13 gang, an accusation that he denies. In addition, his wife, Jennifer Vasquez Sura, filed a protective order against her husband in August 2020. 

The order said their shared son and stepchildren needed protection from Abrego Garcia, accusing him of verbal and physical abuse against her and mental abuse against her children. 

Earlier this month, Abrego Garcia pleaded not guilty to smuggling charges.

Fox News Digital’s Breanne Deppisch and The Associated Press contributed to this report.