Man in Chicago fatally shot by ICE officer after allegedly resisting arrest

An Immigration and Customs Enforcement officer fatally shot a man in the Chicago area during an attempted arrest Friday after the man drove his vehicle toward law enforcement officials and struck the ICE officer, federal authorities said.

The Department of Homeland Security identified the man as Silverio Villegas-Gonzalez and said he was an immigrant living in the country illegally.

When ICE officers attempted to detain Villegas-Gonzalez at a traffic stop, he resisted and hit one of the officers with his car, authorities said in a news release. The officer was “dragged a significant distance,” authorities said, and suffered multiple injuries. “Fearing for his own life, the officer fired his weapon,” according to the news release.

The officer is in stable condition.

“We are praying for the speedy recovery of our law enforcement officer,” DHS spokeswoman Tricia McLaughlin said in the statement. “He followed his training, used appropriate force, and properly enforced the law to protect the public and law enforcement.”

The incident took place in Franklin Park, Illinois, a suburb northwest of Chicago.

Earlier this week, DHS announced the launch of “Operation Midway Blitz,” a stepped-up immigration enforcement effort in Chicago, as part of the Trump administration’s mass deportation campaign. Local officials and immigrant advocates said arrests in Chicago began Sunday.

The Chicago operation comes after the administration ramped up immigration enforcement actions in Los Angeles, D.C. and Boston.