A man fired shots at US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) agents in Chicago’s Little Village neighbourhood on Saturday, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) confirmed. According to CBS, the agents were carrying out immigration enforcement near 26th Street and Kedzie Avenue when a person driving a black Jeep opened fire. Nearby, some people also threw paint cans and bricks at the agents’ vehicles.
The Chicago Police Department (CPD) arrived at the scene. Officers reported hearing shots fired, but said no one was hit. DHS added that the shooter has not been caught and remains at large.
However, according to a Guardian report, Gregory Bovino, the US Border Patrol chief and a prominent face of the Trump administration’s immigration enforcement efforts, who made these claims, had been reprimanded by a federal judge on Thursday for lying about being hit by a rock during an earlier protest confrontation.
Border patrol chief claims agents shot at during Chicago operation
On Saturday, Bovino posted on social media that his agents faced “shooting, vehicular assaults, physical attacks, violent mobs, and blockades” for several hours. According to the reports, residents of Little Village took to the streets, blowing whistles and shouting at federal agents. Videos from the scene show agents pointing their weapons at people before the CPD arrived for crowd control.
Alderman Byron Sigcho-Lopez (25th Ward) said that multiple people were detained throughout the day. In one incident near 23rd and Sawyer, a father was reportedly pulled from his car while his 11-year-old son was inside after agents smashed the car’s windows.
CBS News Chicago also obtained surveillance video showing Commander Bovino inside a local business, where the store owner appeared to ask him to leave. It is unclear why he was in the store. No video has surfaced showing the alleged shooting. However, images and clips on social media show armed agents, including Bovino, confronting protesters, using tear gas, and detaining people.
Saturday also marked two months since “Operation Midway Blitz,” the Trump-era immigration enforcement effort, started in Chicago. Neighbourhoods like Little Village and Pilsen have been heavily affected. In October, mass protests were carried out, and in one incident, tear gas was fired at crowds.
Local leaders have urged Mayor Brandon Johnson to enforce his executive order banning federal agents from using city-owned property for immigration enforcement. Since September, DHS says more than 3,000 people have been arrested as part of Operation Midway Blitz.
Judge says Bovino lied about previous incident
On Thursday, according to the Guardian, the US District Judge Sara Ellis said Bovino had lied about an incident in late October. Video evidence showed him throwing a gas canister at protesters in Little Village without warning, even though he claimed he was hit by a rock first.
“Mr Bovino and the Department of Homeland Security claimed that he had been hit by a rock in the head before throwing the tear gas, but video evidence disproves this. And he ultimately admitted he was not hit until after he threw the tear gas,” Judge Ellis said on Thursday, according to ABC News. Earlier, DHS spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin had also claimed Bovino was hit in the head with a rock.