Video shows federal agents rip Elgin man without criminal record from pickup truck, his partner says
President Donald Trump has called for expanding ICE deportation raids in Chicago and other big Democratic cities.
ELGIN, Ill. (WLS) -- ABC7 talked to the family of the man who federal agents arrested and took into custody on Monday morning.
His partner says he is undocumented but has lived and worked in Elgin for 12 years and has no criminal record.
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Video that has been shared hundreds of times and is circulating on social media shows federal agents ripping a man out of a pickup truck on a residential street in Elgin before putting him in handcuffs and taking him away.
Jasmine Miller lives nearby and was walking her kids to the school bus stop.
"All of a sudden, I hear sirens, and then out of nowhere, you just see everybody running. It's sad," Miller said.
It was very heartbreaking, especially when they literally broke his window... They threw him on the floorVeronica Moreno
Miller shared video showing a federal agent in an FBI vest walking through her neighbor's yard. Another video of the arrest from Veronica Moreno shows at least half a dozen agents, three of them handcuffing the man on the ground.
"It was very heartbreaking, especially when they literally broke his window. And it was like maybe three agents inside the truck taking him out. They threw him on the floor, and instantly they put him in handcuffs," Moreno said. "It was very scary. Like, I felt a knot in my stomach when I saw him getting detained."
SEE ALSO | Trump curbs immigration enforcement at farms, meatpacking plants, hotels and restaurants
The FBI confirmed to the ABC7 I-Team that it was assisting in an immigration enforcement action that resulted in that man's arrest around 7:30 a.m.
The man's family told ABC7 he called them as law enforcement approached him. They live nearby, and his pregnant partner, Kristen Solorio, showed up, seen in pink in the video above. She can be heard screaming in the footage.
ABC7 later sat down with Solorio for an interview. She does not speak English, but told ABC7, in Spanish, that she was there for the majority of her partner's arrest, and that she does not believe he was the target.
Solorio told agents she is eight months pregnant, but her pleas for them to release her partner were ignored.
She admitted that her partner is undocumented, but said the agents did not show a warrant.
An ICE spokesperson was unable to tell ABC7 why the man, who his partner says works as a fencing contractor, was arrested.
"Everybody here is an immigrant. Even Trump is an immigrant himself. His family is the same, and it's bad what he's doing. It shouldn't take place like that, not that kind of action," said Guillermo Garcia, who lives nearby. "It was bad. My neighbors were crying, the daughter was crying. It was bad."
Solorio says she has already been in touch with immigration attorneys who were able to provide her with her partner's case number and court date.
She says he is set to appear in Broadview on July 11.
Trump calls for expanding ICE deportation raids in Chicago, other big Democratic cities
Monday morning's immigration enforcement comes as Chicago may be in for more ICE raids.
President Donald Trump has ordered expanded deportations in Democratic cities.
READ MORE | Trump directs ICE to expand deportations in Democratic-run cities, undeterred by protests
The president wants to expand efforts to detain and deport undocumented immigrants. On social media, Trump said he wants to achieve the single largest mass deportation program in history and plans on targeting those who live in Chicago, Los Angeles, and New York City.
The president's comments come as many in immigrant communities are already on edge.
And as immigration raids and arrests pick up in frequency under pressure from the White House, protesters are increasingly intervening.
In an interview with the I-Team Monday, Sam Olson, director of the Chicago ICE field office, insisted that migrants with criminal records are still the primary target, and protesters, he said, could be prosecuted if they interfere.
Over the weekend, people across the country participated in "No Kings" demonstrations as Trump held a parade in Washington, D.C.
SEE ALSO | Thousands rally for 'No Kings' protests across Chicago against ICE raids, Trump's military parade
Several people were also protesting the administration's latest immigration enforcement.
People with pending immigration cases say they received texts or emails to check-in at the Broadview facility over the weekend.
"People are besides themselves," state Sen. Graciela Guzman said. "They are unsure if they are going to walk out of their appointment. They are unsure of how much forecasting they should do. Will they be able to work tomorrow? Will they be able to take their children to childcare, to camp or to school?"
Some of the people who walked out of that immigration facility were given an ankle monitor and and another immigration appointment.
READ MORE | Broadview immigration case check-in requests over Father's Day weekend raise ICE raid fears
