A year has passed since Joe Abraham’s daughter tragically lost her life in a hit-and-run incident in Urbana, Illinois. This heart-wrenching event has propelled him to confront the repercussions of the state’s ineffective border and immigration policies. He is now calling on Illinois lawmakers to formally recognize the loss of his daughter.

In the wake of this tragedy, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) initiated Operation Midway Blitz. This immigration enforcement effort aims to target criminal illegal immigrants and serves as a tribute to Katie Abraham’s memory. Joe Abraham has also issued a plea to those seeking to enter the country illegally, urging them to “do things the right way.”

“If you truly wish to be a part of America, you have to do things correctly,” Abraham emphasized. He is prominently featured in a video for The American Border Story, a nationwide campaign that highlights the human toll of America’s border crisis.

In an interview with Fox News Digital, Abraham stressed the need for an organized approach to immigration. “There must be an orderly process, and people need to understand how to conduct themselves here,” he explained. He also shared how the lack of response from state leaders has intensified his grief.

The tragic incident that claimed Katie Abraham’s life involved a hit-and-run by a criminal illegal alien in Illinois, a state known for its sanctuary policies. In tribute to Katie, DHS has named its initiative “Operation Midway Blitz,” underscoring the urgent need for reform.

“I received utter silence and indifference from my governor,” said Abraham. “Katie got disrespect and silence.” Abraham said neither Pritzker, Sen. Dick Durbin, Sen. Tammy Duckworth nor his state or local representatives have reached out to him since she was killed.

Abraham even recalled attending a congressional Oversight Committee event in 2025 at which Pritzker and other sanctuary state governors testified, when Katie’s case was cited.

“We were sitting several feet away from him in Congress, and he didn’t spend two seconds – didn’t even look in our direction,” he said. “Father to father – I expected him to care.”

“I wanted him to say, ‘Things got out of control. We’re working on it.’ I wanted leadership and wanted him to acknowledge Katie’s life. She was worth five seconds of his time,” he added.

Katie died in the early morning hours of Jan. 19, 2025, when police said a drunk illegal alien slammed into the vehicle she was riding in with friends and fled the scene.

A second young woman, Chloe Polzin, 21, of Deerfield, died the following day from her injuries.

“They were at a stoplight in front of the hospital and were barreled into from the rear at almost 80 mph by an illegal immigrant who was drunk driving,” Abraham said.

Joe Abraham criticized Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s handling of illegal immigration.  (Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)

“[Katie] died on the scene… They had to rip open that Honda Civic… like a tuna can to drag her dead body out of it,” Abraham said, before describing his daughter as vibrant, driven and full of promise.

“Katie was a productive, talented, beautiful woman, so intelligent, so funny, so witty. She had this way of bringing people in and making them feel seen.”

She loved sports and the water, he said, and had her entire life ahead of her but will now never see her get married, and he said he will, “never walk her down the aisle or see her children.”

Abraham said the driver, Julio Cucul-Bol, is a Guatemalan national using a Mexican alias.

Authorities said Cucul-Bol had previously been deported from the U.S. He was arrested near Dallas while on a bus heading to Matamoros, Mexico. Police said he was found with fake Mexican identification under the name Juan JaHaziel Saenz-Suarez.

Cucul-Bol was sentenced to 30 years in prison after accepting a plea deal for charges including leaving the scene of a crash resulting in death, aggravated DUI resulting in death and reckless homicide.

Operation Midway Blitz was launched in Katie Abraham’s honor. (Demetrius Freeman/The Washington Post via Getty Images)

The Department of Justice (DOJ) had charged him with possessing a false Social Security card, possessing a false permanent resident card, making a false statement on a bank application and false use of a passport.

“The issue was that when he came into the U.S. there were no background checks. There were no health checks,” Abraham said. “He had HIV. That’s in the court transcripts and court documents.”

Cucul-Bol could not read or write and spoke neither English nor Spanish – rather, he spoke a Mayan language, according to Abraham. “He wasn’t working and wasn’t productive. This was also not his first foray into drunk driving,” he said.

Abraham said his criticism surrounds weak policy, which he hoped would be “rational policy and some common sense,” he said. “If you’re going to nullify federal law, you better have a process to fill that void.”

Abraham called for practical policies that protect victims and the broader public while also supporting immigrants who come legally and with good intentions. He added that, so far, the main progress has been federal agencies like DHS and ICE stepping in to assist communities despite facing resistance from multiple sides.

“ICE has to go out on the streets now, because Illinois won’t cooperate,” he said. “You can’t throw out the welcome mat to anyone and everyone, unchecked and unvetted, and then wash your hands of the consequences.”

Abraham alleges that neither his governor, senators – including Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., pictured – nor his state and local representatives contacted him following his daughter’s death. (Scott Olson/Getty Images)

Illinois and the city of Chicago filed a lawsuit against the federal government over Operation Midway Blitz, alleging that President Donald Trump’s administration violated Tenth Amendment protections through what the suit described as “unlawful and violent” enforcement tactics.

“We can contrast Pritzker with Donald Trump, who invited us to the White House, who looked me in the eye, father to father. He acknowledged Katie’s life and said things are out of control, and he will work to fix it,” he added. “This past year without my daughter has been the most brutal year of my life.”