CHICAGO – Gregory Bovino, a senior U.S. Customs and Border Protection official known for spearheading a tough immigration enforcement campaign in Los Angeles, announced on Tuesday that his team has arrived in Chicago and made multiple arrests targeting “criminal illegal aliens.”
Posting on X, Bovino shared a video featuring Chicago scenes and noted, “We are already going hard this morning!!! Many arrests.” His presence signals an escalation of President Donald Trump’s administration’s crackdown on undocumented immigrants in the nation’s third-largest city.
Last week, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) launched operations in Chicago and elsewhere in Illinois, focusing on immigrants lacking legal status amid criticism of local “sanctuary” laws that limit federal enforcement cooperation. Illinois Governor JB Pritzker condemned Bovino’s approach, calling him a “wannabe social media star” for publicizing enforcement with videos rather than coordinating with state officials. Pritzker criticized the tactics as violent and discriminatory.
Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, also in Chicago on Tuesday, confirmed that DHS officers arrested violent offenders, including those charged with assault, DUI, and felony stalking.
Bovino’s prior Los Angeles crackdown, involving patrols in neighborhoods and commercial areas, faced legal challenges over racial profiling but resumed recently after the Supreme Court lifted a lower court injunction. His highly produced social media posts have been both influential and controversial in immigration enforcement circles.
This increased enforcement has raised tensions within Chicago’s immigrant communities, with concerns over the effects on public safety and civil rights ongoing.