Armed federal agents in military fatigues busted down their doors overnight, pulling men, women and children from their apartments, some of them naked, residents and witnesses said. Agents approached or entered nearly every apartment in the five-story building, and U.S. citizens were among those detained for hours.<\/p>\n
When he got home from work, Jones said he entered his unit to find all of his electronics and furniture missing, and all of his clothes and shoes thrown on the floor. Jones said he had no idea who took his belongings and hadn\u2019t received answers from Chicago police.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m pissed off,\u201d Jones said. \u201cI feel defeated because the authorities aren\u2019t doing anything.\u201d<\/p>\n
On Wednesday, toys, shoes and food were still in piles in the building\u2019s hallways. Property managers were seen throwing mattresses and broken doors into dumpsters.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n Personal items and trash in the hallway at the apartment building where ICE raided and detained migrants during a night operation at 7500 S South Shore Drive in South Shore on Wednesday.<\/p>\n Anthony Vazquez\/Sun-Times<\/p>\n The Department of Homeland Security said federal agents with Border Patrol, the FBI and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives arrested 37 people in the raid. DHS said some of those arrested \u201care believed to be involved in drug trafficking and distribution, weapons crimes and immigration violators.\u201d<\/p>\n The feds also claimed the South Shore neighborhood was \u201ca location known to be frequented by Tren de Aragua members and their associates,\u201d but DHS gave no evidence to support the assertion, and authorities did not confirm that any of the people arrested were members of the Venezuelan gang.<\/p>\n Alleged Tren de Aragua<\/a> members have been charged and detained in the city as recently as August. But the Chicago Sun-Times has found little evidence<\/a> tying them to violence in Chicago.<\/p>\n Rodrick Johnson, 67, is one of many residents who were detained by federal agents during the South Shore raid. A U.S. citizen, he said agents broke through his door and dragged him out in zip ties.<\/p>\n Johnson said he was left tied up outside the building for nearly three hours before agents finally let him go.<\/p>\n \u201cI asked [agents] why they were holding me if I was an American citizen, and they said I had to wait until they looked me up,\u201d Jones said. \u201cI asked if they had a warrant, and I asked for a lawyer. They never brought one.\u201d<\/p>\n Video taken near 75th Street and South Shore Drive showed federal agents in large vehicles gathered on the street near the building. Some wore U.S. Border Patrol uniforms. Others had FBI logos.<\/p>\n A spokesperson for Chicago\u2019s FBI field office confirmed the bureau was present to support a \u201ctargeted immigration enforcement operation\u201d carried out by Border Patrol.<\/p>\n The raid is one of the largest operations executed since President Donald Trump\u2019s administration announced the launch of \u201cOperation Midway Blitz\u201d on Sept. 8, bringing a flood of federal immigration officers to the Chicago area to conduct raids and arrests.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n