A Waukegan deputy police chief issued an apology after he was seen on video talking to the U.S. Border Patrol commander, angering residents who claimed the police were cooperating with immigration agents.
Video from Friday captured Waukegan Deputy Police Chief Elias Agalianos talking with U.S. Border Patrol Commander Gregory Bovino.
“Respectfully, I know you have a job to do. Our community is very pissed off. I’m here to keep the peace,” Agalianos said to him.
Bovino questioned why they were angry. “Because they’re upset, they’re scared.”
Bovino asked Agalianos if he was upset, to which he responded that he was not and that he was there to do his job.
“I wish we had more of a heads-up on certain things, but I understand the overall security and safety for the operation — I get that. I’m here for safety. God bless ya’ll for doing what you do. Be safe.”
Bovino responded, “You guys be safe also. We’re going to keep the community safe.” Agalianos added that he and his officers responded due to the reckless actions of drivers who were following the Border Patrol convoy.
Bovino is a high-ranking official with the U.S. Border Patrol. He is the commander tasked with leading the Trump administration’s aggressive immigration crackdown in the Chicago area.
“I understand how my actions and words may have caused heightened emotions among residents. My interaction was due to an escalating sequence of events that transpired in Waukegan throughout the day,” Agalianos said in a statement on Thursday.
“When I spoke with Commander Bovino, I knew tensions were elevated for both members of our community and federal agents. My goal was to de-escalate and stabilize the situation, communicating the distress and fear that these operations have caused in our community. In that moment, our police officers, me included, were at the scene strictly for public safety, and to keep it from further escalation, as we’ve seen in other cities,” he said.
Agalianos apologized to those who felt his actions were an “endorsement of operations” that have affected the community.
“They were not an endorsement. They were an effort to safeguard our community from a volatile situation. To everyone in Waukegan, I assure you that the Waukegan Police Department is committed to serving and protecting everyone in this city, regardless of immigration status,” Agalianos said.
The deputy chief said the police chief has previously stated the department follows guidelines established in the Illinois TRUST Act, which prohibits state and local law enforcement agencies from assisting the federal government with civil immigration enforcement.
“In times of division and uncertainty, leadership means standing firm in our mission to provide safety, and dignity for all. My unwavering commitment to our community has not changed. To our community, I hear you and I stand with you,” Agalianos said.
The incident on Friday came as U.S. Border Patrol agents conducted immigration operations in the Waukegan, North Chicago and Park City area, sparking confrontations with residents as they made arrests.
Waukegan Mayor Sam Cunningham issued the statement earlier this week calling out Bovino, saying he did not come to Waukegan to serve, to protect or to help.
“As he has in other cities, Mr. Bovino came here to escalate chaos, to provoke confrontation, and to spread fear,” Cunningham said.
The mayor referenced a confrontation involving U.S. Border Patrol agents and Waukegan 3rd Ward Alderman Juan A. Martinez.
Martinez said he was driving back to work when he was confronted by federal agents on Baldwin Avenue in Waukegan.
The agents stopped their vehicle in front of him, approached his vehicle and pointed guns at him as he was sitting behind the wheel.
“I will be honest: I felt fear. I am a proud Latino leader, but no one should have to experience that kind of intimidation, especially from those sworn to uphold the law,” Martinez said.
“I am deeply shaken, but I am also more determined than ever to stand with my community,” he said. Martinez said he is grateful to be safe but what happened to him should “never happen to anyone.”
“We deserve accountability, respect, and the right to feel safe in our own city,” Martinez said, adding that Waukegan is a city that “chooses compassion over cruelty and unity over fear.”
Cunningham said Martinez was neither protesting nor acting aggressively at the time, as he also called out Bovino’s “disturbing” actions after he was seen on video playing rock-paper-scissors with another agent at the Exxon gas station at Glen Rock Avenue and Belvidere Road in Waukegan.
“While Waukegan families are simply trying to live, work, and survive, Mr. Bovino and these Border Patrol agents are laughing and playing games with people’s lives,” Cunningham said.
“That is not law enforcement. That is exactly the kind of fear and recklessness that Mr. Bovino and his team bring wherever they go. This time, he used Waukegan as his stage for political theater. Fortunately, no one got hurt,” he said.