Illinois Officer Arrested by ICE for Overstaying Visa: Immigration Compliance in Question

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In a noteworthy development, federal immigration authorities apprehended a police officer from suburban Chicago on Wednesday after uncovering that he had been residing illegally in the United States for more than ten years.

Agents from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detained Radule Bojovic, 33, originally from Montenegro, who was employed as a sworn officer with the Hanover Park Police Department. The arrest took place during a targeted operation known as Operation Midway Blitz conducted in Rolling Meadows.

According to ICE officials, Bojovic had overstayed his B-2 tourist visa, which mandated his departure from the U.S. by March 31, 2015.

Despite his immigration status, Bojovic had been working as a police officer, marking him as the second officer arrested under similar circumstances this year. Earlier in July, Jon Luke Evans, a police officer from Maine originally from Jamaica, was also detained by immigration authorities and subsequently agreed to voluntarily leave the country.

“Illegal aliens are prohibited from owning or possessing firearms — full stop,” said Sam Olson, director of ICE Enforcement and Removal Operations Chicago Field Office. “This is the second known instance in recent months of a local police department hiring an illegal alien and unlawfully issuing him a firearm while on duty in violation of federal law.”

Federal law makes it a felony for individuals in the country illegally to possess firearms.

Upon his arrest, Bojovic presented his employee identification card confirming his employment with the Hanover Park Police Department. He told agents he was not carrying a weapon because he was only authorized to carry his firearm while on duty.

Bojovic graduated from the Suburban Law Enforcement Academy on Aug. 22, according to a Facebook post from the police department. He had been undergoing field training before his arrest.

According to Nexstar’s WGN, the village of Hanover Park said the officer’s hiring was done through all the proper channels, adding that the federal government allowed the hiring at the beginning of 2025.

Hanover Park said in a statement that its police department “hired Officer Bojovic in January 2025 in full compliance with federal and state law,” WGN reported.

“The bottom line is that all information we received from the federal government indicated that Officer Bojovic is legally authorized to work in the United States as a police officer,” Hanover Park continued. “Clearly, without that authorization, the Village has not received any notice from any federal or state agency that his work authorization status has ever been revoked.”

On Thursday, at a Hanover Park board meeting where Bojovic was scheduled to be recognized for the extra training he completed in September, Hanover Park Mayor Rodney Craig instead read a statement about the arrest, WGN reported:

“We are offended that our police department has to endure this,” Craig said. “Bottom line is we performed all necessary diligence and followed the law throughout the hiring process. If the officer didn’t hold federal work authorization, he would not have been hired.”

Hanover Park, according to the report, said that Bojovic has been placed on administrative leave pending the outcome of the immigration proceedings. ICE detainee records indicate Bojovic is in custody in Indiana, WGN reported.

An Illinois Public Act allows that non-U.S. citizens who are legally authorized to work in the U.S. can apply to become police officers, the report says, subject to all requirements, including background checks.