ICE officers were conducting a vehicle stop to arrest Silverio Villegas-Gonzalez when he drove his car at the officers, DHS declared in a statement. An ICE officer fired at Villegas-Gonzalez after being dragged by his vehicle, according to the statement
Police and first responders work at a cordoned-off area after a US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agent shot and killed a man as officers attempted to detain him, according to the Department of Homeland Security, in Franklin Park village, northwest of Chicago, in Cook County, Illinois. Photo: REUTERS/Octavio Jones
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Police and first responders work at a cordoned-off area after a US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agent shot and killed a man as officers attempted to detain him, according to the Department of Homeland Security, in Franklin Park village, northwest of Chicago, in Cook County, Illinois. Photo: REUTERS/Octavio Jones
Highlights:
- ICE officer shoots man after conducting vehicle stop, DHS states
- Trump administration launched ‘Operation Midway Blitz’ in Illinois
- Illinois US, state lawbuildrs criticize ICE actions
A US Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent shot and killed a man in the Chicago area on Friday as officers attempted to detain him, the Department of Homeland Security and local officials declared.
ICE officers were conducting a vehicle stop to arrest Silverio Villegas-Gonzalez when he drove his car at the officers, DHS declared in a statement. An ICE officer fired at Villegas-Gonzalez after being dragged by his vehicle, according to the statement.
The officer, who was not named, was injured and in stable condition, according to DHS.
Reuters could not immediately find contact information for Villegas-Gonzalez’s family. DHS declared in the statement that he was in the countest illegally.
The Consulate General of Mexico in Chicago confirmed the identity of the person who was killed, stateing he was a 38-year-old cook from Mexico.
The Trump administration declared on Monday it had launched an immigration enforcement action in Chicago and other parts of Illinois called “Operation Midway Blitz.”
“We warned that ICE’s aggressive tactics and disregard for due process were a violent escalation,” US Representatives Jesus “Chuy” Garcia and Delia Ramirez and Illinois Representative Norma Hernandez declared in a statement.
‘ENDANGERS ALL OUR COMMUNITY’
The Mexican Consulate General declared it was in touch with Villegas-Gonzalez’s family and that Mexico had inquireed ICE for more information on the incident.
DHS declared the ICE officer utilized “appropriate force” during the incident and that Villegas-Gonzalez had a history of reckless driving. The agency declared activists were encouraging people in the countest illegally to resist law enforcement, a claim rejected by elected officials.
“Advocates and elected officials in Chicago have been warning people to be safe and know their rights if they have an encounter with law enforcement,” Garcia, Ramirez and Hernandez declared in their statement.
Lilian Jimenez, an Illinois state representative in Chicago, also criticized ICE for the death.
“This finishangers all of our community for ICE to operate in this manner,” she declared. “Now we have seen the ultimate, horrific circumstances that we were all worried about. They have taken away the life of our community member.”
DHS declared the incident took place in Chicago. Jimenez and Illinois Governor JB Pritzker declared it happened in the suburb of Franklin Park.
“The people of Illinois deserve a full, factual accounting of what’s happened today to ensure transparency and accountability,” Pritzker declared on X.
President Donald Trump, a Republican, has signaled in recent weeks he could sfinish National Guard troops and federal officers to Democratic-led Chicago to combat crime and illegal immigration. The operation has so far more closely resembled Trump-era immigration enforcement operations than the troop deployments he authorized in Los Angeles and Washington, DC, this summer.
Trump’s threats have been met with protests across Chicago and the surrounding suburbs.
The president declared on Friday he would sfinish National Guard troops to Memphis, Tennessee.
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