Washington DC - Shortly before Franklin Humberto Coral Garrido was arrested by US Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Secretary of State Marco Rubio supported his deportation on the grounds that he had criticized a key MAGA ally.

Coral Garrido was on Tuesday detained by immigration authorities in Phoenix after speaking out against Abelardo De La Espriella, Colombia's far-right presidential candidate and a Trump ally.

His arrest came the same day that Rubio issued a memo, obtained by the New York Times, claiming he should be deported from the US on the basis of political activism in support of incumbent Colombian President Gustavo Petro.

"Coral Garrido has used his presence in the United States to conduct political activity in support of the Petro government," the memo reads.

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"Allowing Coral Garrido to remain in the United States… undermines US foreign policy interests in Colombia's democratic processes and signals that foreign nationals may use US platforms to conduct politically motivated disinformation campaigns," Rubio wrote.

Over the course of Trump's second administration, numerous migrants and international students have been targeted by immigration authorities after using their First Amendment rights to express political views and participate in protest.

In one of many cases, Rubio last year targeted Columbia University student Mahmoud Khalil over his anti-genocide activism. He was ultimately arrested by immigration authorities and continues to face legal challenges.

Speaking with the NYT, top Biden-era ICE lawyer Kerry Doyle said that Coral Garrido's arrest is yet another step in the administration's push to attack migrants' freedom of speech.

"I find it highly ironic, but also very troubling, that the secretary of state is using Castro-like heavy-handed tactics to quash free speech and protected political activity by leveraging the awesome authority of [the Department of Homeland Security] against perceived opponents who happen to be noncitizens," she said.