U.S. Border Patrol Cmdr. Gregory Bovino led a caravan of SUVs through Chicago and into the suburbs Wednesday morning, making at least one arrest after making a surprise return to the city a day earlier and targeting immigrant communities.
A caravan of SUVs with out-of-state license plates were seen traveling near Midway International Airport, then continuing through the North Side of Chicago and into Evanston.
Border Patrol agents arrested at least one man at a Mobil gas station in the northern suburb, 1950 Green Bay Road. Bovino then held what amounted to an impromptu news conference, telling a crowd that he couldn’t provide a reason for the arrest because his agents were “still running checks.”
“You can look at our websites, Instagram, Facebook, X,” said Bovino, a prolific social media user. “Take a look and we’ll show you what we’re after here in your community.”
Despite leaving Chicago last month with a large contingent of agents, Bovino said the Border Patrol has had “several hundred here continually,” and staffing remains around that level. “We never left,” Bovino said.
Evanston Mayor Daniel Biss, a Democrat who is now running for a U.S. House seat, confronted Bovino at the gas station as protesters’ whistles blared in the background. Bovino said he came to Evanston to address “violence committed by those that shouldn’t be here, in your community.”
“I’m unaware of that happening,” Biss responded.
“Well, that’s probably the problem,” Bovino shot back. “Maybe you should get aware.”
The tense standoff was then interrupted by a booming voice from within the crowd: “Hey Bovino, we don’t want you here, bro!”
On Tuesday, Gov. JB Pritzker, Mayor Brandon Johnson and other Democrats slammed Bovino’s decision to come back to Chicago, just days before the Christmas holiday. Federal immigration agents detained at least 15 people Tuesday, including day laborers and a tamale vendor, according to community activists.
“They seem to already be deploying again with masks and unmarked cars and SUVs into neighborhoods,” Pritzker said Tuesday. “They call it enforcement. We call it harassment.”
Bovino has become the face of President Donald Trump’s nationwide deportation efforts and
was at the center of much of the chaos that transpired during the early phases of Operation Midway Blitz, the operation targeting the Chicago area that has been marked by car chases, shootings, gas deployments and other heavy-handed tactics.
U.S. District Judge Sara Ellis issued an historic ruling, which restricted the use of force and ordered Bovino to appear before her for daily check-ins. But an appellate court later put those restrictions on hold and called off any daily meetings.
Bovino and his team left the city last month for short stints in Charlotte, North Carolina, and New Orleans.
It’s unknown how long Bovino and his agents will stay in Chicago this time. He told a Block Club Chicago reporter Tuesday that he was joined by “several hundred” agents from Border Patrol and other agencies.
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