The Department of Homeland Security on Monday said the man they took into custody after a prolonged arrest in Elgin Saturday, where agents sprayed tear gas against protesters, was a “suspected member of Tren de Aragua,” a Venezuelan street gang.
Federal authorities identified the man as Luis Jesus Acosta Gutierrez, of Venezuela, who entered the country in April 2023 and was granted temporary protected status, DHS said.
When asked about evidence of Acosta Gutierrez’s alleged affiliation to the Tren de Aragua gang, a U.S.-designated foreign terrorist group as of this year, DHS Assistant Secretary for Public Affairs Tricia McLaughlin said, “DHS intelligence assessments go well beyond just gang affiliate tattoos and social media.”
“Tren De Aragua is one of the most violent and ruthless terrorist gangs on planet earth,” McLaughlin said. “We are confident in our law enforcement’s intelligence, and we aren’t going to share intelligence reports and undermine national security every time a gang member denies he is one. That would be insane.”
Records show that Acosta paid a fine for a 2023 traffic violation for driving without a license and the matter was closed in April 2024, according to McHenry County court.
Federal authorities said Acosta Gutierrez resisted arrest by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents on Saturday when they were conducting a vehicle stop, and that he rammed an officer’s vehicle into a tree. He then barricaded himself in an apartment while officers tried to negotiate with him to leave, according to DHS.
Community members and federal agents face off during a standoff along Maple Lane in Elgin on Dec. 6, 2025. Federal agents surrounded an apartment building for hours after chasing a man inside who they were trying to arrest. (Stacey Wescott/Chicago Tribune)
At around 10 a.m. about 15 agents showed up to arrest a man authorities identified as Acosta Gutierrez in an apartment building on the 1600 block of Maple Lane in Elgin. Elgin police have said there had been a traffic crash that morning involving a federal agent and the man, who then fled to the building.
The crowd grew to at least 200 people who blew whistles and shouted at agents to leave. By around 2:30 p.m. there were about 30 agents trying to negotiate with the man who was still on the second-floor balcony.
DHS, which alleged people threw rocks and bottles at law enforcement, also claimed the “local police department refused to protect ICE law enforcement officers.” Hours later, Acosta Gutierrez was taken into custody by ICE officers, according to DHS.
“We are grateful all of our officers are safe after yet another vehicle was used as a weapon against them and more rioters threw rocks and bottles at them,” McLaughlin said. “Our officers are experiencing a more than 1150% increase in assaults against them as they put their lives on the line to arrest the worst of the worst criminal illegal aliens. This violence against law enforcement must end.”
While driving away on Saturday, federal agents hurled pepper spray and flash-bang grenades into the crowd. One agent told community members, “Back up or gas will be deployed,” seconds before he threw a canister, a video shows. After the arrest, videos taken by a witness at the scene showed some people throwing snowballs at the agents and their vehicles, while others yelled at them to stop, the Tribune reported.
State Rep. Anna Moeller, a Democrat whose district includes Elgin, was at the scene Saturday with her husband. She said it concerned her how the tear gas was indiscriminately let off as the agents left.
“They didn’t need to do that. ICE was leaving the scene. What they did was create chaos and discomfort. Who trains law enforcement to do that?” Moeller said.
Elgin Mayor David Kaptain denounced ICE tactics in Elgin in a Facebook video shared over the weekend, and called on people to come together as a community to “work our way through this problem.”
“It discourages me, it disgusts me, the actions of the federal agents that came to our city,” Kaptain said. “This city was founded on its diversity, and self-respect and mutual respect between our residents. ICE people have not shown that respect to this community and that really angers me.”
Federal agents spread tear gas along Maple Lane as agents leave the area in Elgin on Dec. 6, 2025. (Stacey Wescott/Chicago Tribune)
People turn and run after federal agents sprayed chemicals on them during a standoff on Maple Lane on Dec. 6, 2025, in Elgin. (Stacey Wescott/Chicago Tribune)
Elgin Assistant City Manager Karina Nava said city staff were reviewing the DHS claims about the Police Department’s alleged inaction in Elgin on Saturday and would issue a statement.
During an unrelated news conference on Monday, Mayor Brandon Johnson condemned the weekend activity by federal immigration agents and said he had not received word of any ramp-up of DHS enforcement in Chicago yet.
“I have seen those reports, and they are just as gruesome as they’ve been over the course of (President Donald) Trump’s reign in this season,” Johnson told reporters. “As far as specific intel around what their activity could be or will be, none of that has crossed my desk. I can tell you, though, that we are in a constant state of preparation. We do know at some point the Trump administration is going to double down or continue their efforts to terrorize cities across America.”
It is not the first time federal authorities have claimed to have arrested members of the gang, which originated in a Venezuelan prison. Trump declared it a foreign terrorist organization earlier this year, reflecting his administration’s emphasis on deporting its members in the United States.
In September, a controversial raid at 7500 S. South Shore Drive in Chicago had been billed as an attempt to arrest known Tren de Aragua gang members and their associates in the country illegally. The Tribune reported exclusively that no public criminal charges have been filed against anyone in connection with the raid.
Chicago Tribune’s Alice Yin and Madeline Buckley and freelancer Mike Danahey contributed.
https://www.chicagotribune.com/2025/12/08/elgin-arrest-immigration-dhs/
