Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin said Saturday in a news release that law enforcement officers “fired defensive shots” at “an armed US citizen” after multiple vehicles “boxed in” federal agents who were patrolling Chicago in the morning.

Newsweek has reached out to ICE, DHS, and Customs and Border Protection for comment via email on Saturday.

“This morning, during routine patrolling in Broadview, in the same area of Chicago that law enforcement were assaulted yesterday, our brave law enforcement officers were rammed by vehicles and boxed in by 10 cars,” McLaughlin said in the statement.

The Trump administration has ramped up immigration enforcement in Chicago through Operation Midway Blitz, which started in early September and seeks to target individuals in the country without legal status who have criminal records or pending charges. Dozens of armed federal agents in tactical gear have patrolled the city.

Protesters demonstrating against ICE raids, arrests, and detention conditions have at times clashed with law enforcement. In Los Angeles this summer, officers used tear gas and rubber bullets to disperse crowds during several nights of demonstrations.

The shooting comes weeks after Silverio Villegas-Gonzalez was shot dead by an ICE officer in a Chicago suburb on September 12.

More here

Tagged: Border BACK TO HOMEPAGE