A Hanover Park police officer arrested by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents last month has been released on bond as he awaits the outcome of his immigration case.
Radule Bojovic, 25, was arrested by ICE agents on Oct. 15, accused of overstaying a tourist visa by more than a decade. But village officials insisted he had valid federal work authorization forms.
Hanover Park officials have insisted Bojovic had valid federal work authorization forms that were recently renewed.
On Monday, an ICE spokesperson confirmed Bojovic was released from custody on Oct. 31, after an immigration judge granted him a $2,500 immigration bond two days earlier. His immigration case is still pending.
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security has said Bojovich, who is from Montenegro, was living in the U.S. on a tourist visa that expired March 31, 2015.
DHS also criticized the Village of Hanover Park for employing Bojovich as a police officer, saying it was illegal for him to possess a firearm.
However, Hanover Park officials said he was hired in January “in full compliance with federal and state law.”
“Before hiring Officer Bojovic, the Village confirmed that he was legally authorized by the federal government to work in the United States. At the time of his hire, Officer Bojovic presented the Village with a Work Authorization Card, which was issued by the federal government’s U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. The card was valid and recently renewed,” the Hanover Park Police Department said in a statement at the time of Bojovic’s arrest.
Police also said Bojovich passed a criminal background check with the FBI and Illinois State Police, and that a memo from the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives on Jan. 5, 2024, confirmed his immigration status allows him to carry a firearm while on duty.
“The bottom line is that all information we received from the federal government indicated that Officer Bojovic is leaglly authorized to work in the United States as a police officer. Clearly, without that authorization, the Village would not have hired him. Additionally, the Village has not received any notice from any federal or state agency that his work authorization status has ever been revoked,” police added.
Bojovic has been placed on administrative leave pending the outcome of the immigration proceedings against him. Police said, if he is allowed to stay in the U.S. and remains authorized to work here, he will be returned to full duty status.
CBS News Chicago has reached out to Hanover Park police to ask if Bojovic will be allowed to return to duty while his immigration case is pending now that he has been released from custody.
Note: The video above is from a previous report.