Chicago area residents mourn immigrant fatally shot by ICE agent during arrest attempt

FRANKLIN PARK, Illinois – Mr Rudy Repa, a 27-year-old resident of Franklin Park, Illinois, placed a single marigold at a makeshift memorial near the spot where a

US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officer fatally shot a man from Mexico

during an attempted arrest in the Chicago suburb.

The US Department of Homeland Security (DHS) said an officer shot Mr Silverio Villegas-Gonzalez, 38, during a traffic stop on Sept 12 in Franklin Park.

In a statement, the agency said Mr Villegas-Gonzalez was in the country illegally and had attempted to flee in his car, dragging and injuring the officer.

An ICE spokesperson said the agent, who was not named, had been released from the hospital after suffering back injuries, lacerations to the hand and tears to the knee.

Mr Villegas-Gonzalez’s death has angered community members such as Mr Repa and heightened safety fears among the region’s Latino residents.

On Sept 13, about 100 people, including Mr Repa, turned out for a vigil for Mr Villegas-Gonzalez in Franklin Park, a community in which around half of the residents are Hispanic or Latino.

“I'm incredibly mad, and I want justice for our community,” he said.

DHS on Sept 8 launched a deportation crackdown in Illinois that it said was targeting criminals among immigrants in the US without legal status.

The department said the operation was necessary because of city and state “sanctuary” laws that limit cooperation with federal immigration authorities. 

Illinois Governor JB Pritzker and Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson have called for an accounting of the incident involving Mr Villegas-Gonzalez. On Sept 13, Mr Johnson said on social media platform X that it was an “avoidable tragedy”.

At a press conference, US Representative Delia Ramirez said Mr Villegas-Gonzalez was shot immediately after dropping off his children at a nearby school.

ICE declined to provide more details on the incident over the weekend. It referred to a press release that said Mr Villegas-Gonzalez had a history of reckless driving and that the ICE agent fired his weapon because he feared for his life.

Ms Alexandra Calleja, 34, teared up as she spoke about the killing at the Sept 14 vigil.

“I think he might have gotten scared,” she said. “He might have wanted to leave because it crossed his mind that, ‘If I get taken away, I’ll never see my kids again’.”

Many residents attending the vigil were also immigrants, born in places such as Guatemala and Chile.

Mr Pritzker said in August that he thought US President Donald Trump’s administration was timing ICE operations to coincide with celebrations for Mexican Independence Day, which falls on Sept 16 and is a major event in Chicago’s large Mexican-American community. 

A large Mexican Independence Day parade in Chicago’s Little Village neighbourhood on Sept 14 still drew thousands of attendees to enjoy music, singing and dancing. There were anti-ICE signs along the route and volunteers on the lookout for federal agents.

Mr Marco Villalobos, 46, who was part of the parade, said he did not bring his three children because he was worried ICE agents might be there.

“It’s a terrible thing; they’re trying to hunt people down,” he said of Mr Villegas-Gonzalez’s death. REUTERS