A leader of the Latin Kings gang allegedly placed a bounty on the chief of the Trump administration’s deportation raids in Illinois amid a surge in violent attacks against federal immigration officers.
Federal law enforcement officers arrested illegal immigrant gangbanger Juan Espinoza Martinez after he allegedly attempted to orchestrate a murder-for-hire scheme to take out Commander at Large of the U.S. Border Patrol Chief Gregory Bovino.
Martinez, who goes by the nickname “Monkey,” allegedly sent a message to fellow gang members on Snapchat that pictured Bovino and offered a $10,000 reward to “take him down,” according to a screenshot shared by the Department of Homeland Security. The message also offered “$2,000 on information when you get him.”
“It’s a war zone out there,” Bovino told Fox News host Sean Hannity Monday night in response to the latest threat.
He added: “That’s something out of a third-world country, is this America?”
A screenshot of a Snapchat conversation shows a discussion about the bounty placed on Bovino. (Credit: DHS)
The gang leader also “instructed Latin Kings members to acquire firearms and hang out in the area” after a convoy of vehicles rammed into Border Patrol agents driving in the Chicago area Saturday, according to court documents.
One of the alleged attackers was armed with a semiautomatic weapon, prompting agents to fire shots, striking the individual.
When agents called for backup from the Chicago Police Department as rioters formed a mob in response to the shooting, the local officers were instructed to stand down.
“Placing a bounty on a federal officer’s head is cowardly and an act of war on the rule of law,” Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche said in a statement Monday. “This case shows what Take Back America means: reclaiming our neighborhoods from violent thugs and criminal gangs.”
“We will hunt anyone who targets those who protect our borders, streets, and communities. Rest assured – threaten law enforcement and the full weight of the U.S. government will come for you,” he said.
Mugshot of Juan Espinoza-Martinez
(Credit: DHS)
A federal judge declined to block Trump’s deployment of troops to Chicago Monday, allowing the feds to send 200 Texas National Guard soldiers to quell anti-ICE violence across the sanctuary city while the case is ongoing. The next hearing in the case is set for Thursday, according to the New York Times.
Troops are expected to arrive in the Windy City Tuesday or Wednesday, according to the report.
Across the country, assaults on immigration agents have increased 1,000% in the past 8 months, according to DHS.
Illinois, however, has responded to the Trump administration’s move with a lawsuit as the sanctuary state’s governor, JB Pritzker, labels the deployment an “invasion.”
“The state of Illinois is going to use every lever at our disposal to resist this power grab and get [Kristi] Noem’s thugs the hell out of Chicago,” Pritzker said in an afternoon press conference.
Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson also responded to the federal government’s actions Monday by establishing “ICE-free zones” across the city.
.png)
.png)
