Border Patrol vehicle rammed before clash on Chicago’s Southeast Side, officials say

Federal agents clash with residents on Chicago's East Side

Chaos erupted on Chicago's East Side on Tuesday as several residents clashed with federal agents.

CHICAGO - A confrontation broke out Tuesday afternoon on Chicago’s Southeast Side after a crash involving federal agents, according to police and federal authorities.

At least one person detained during the incident was a teenage American citizen, according to attorneys.

What we know:

It happened around noon near South Avenue N and East 105th Street in the East Side neighborhood. SkyFOX was over the scene as dozens of federal agents were seen facing off with a growing crowd.

Chicago police say officers were called to the 10500 block of South Avenue N around 11:07 a.m. for a crash involving federal authorities. CPD says they weren’t part of the federal operation but responded to document the accident.

A Department of Homeland Security spokesperson says the incident began when a vehicle "driven by an illegal alien" rammed a Border Patrol vehicle and tried to flee. A damaged SUV was towed from the scene.

Agents pursued and eventually stopped the vehicle using a precision immobilization technique, or PIT maneuver. DHS says two people then ran from the car but were caught and taken into custody. A senior DHS source told Fox News that those arrested were from Venezuela. They were identified as Luis Gerardo Pirela-Ramirez and Yonder Enrique Tenefe-Perez.

As agents worked to secure the scene, a crowd began to gather. Police say they tried to calm tensions as federal agents were preparing to leave, but people in the crowd started throwing objects. That’s when federal agents deployed tear gas into the street.

Large crowds tear-gassed by federal agents in Chicago's East Side neighborhood

Dozens of federal agents descended on Chicago's East Side neighborhood Tuesday afternoon, deploying tear gas and detaining several people.

Thirteen Chicago police officers were exposed to the tear gas, and exposure reports are being filed.

"This incident is not isolated and reflects a growing and dangerous trend of illegal aliens violently resisting arrest and agitators and criminals ramming cars into our law enforcement officers," a DHS spokesperson said in a statement

"The fact that this attack was carried out by two illegal immigrants, highlights the need for federal law enforcement to continue to do their job of enforcing the laws of our nation —all while receiving no pay thanks to the Democrats’ government shutdown."

At least one person detained by Customs and Border Patrol agents was a 15-year-old boy who is an American citizen, according to attorneys with the law firm Romanucci & Blandin. The boy was "grabbed off a Chicago East Side street" at around 12:30 p.m., slammed to the ground, kneed in the back, and zip-tied by CBP agents, according to a law firm news release.

The teen was then handcuffed and was put in the back of a vehicle for five hours and not allowed to contact his mother, the attorneys said.

"This is how people disappear in autocracies—grabbed off streets, held in unmarked locations, no calls to family, no stated charges, no due process," said Antonio M. Romanucci, an attorney, in the statement. "A 15-year-old American citizen was effectively 'disappeared' for five hours in Chicago. This is not law enforcement; this is the playbook of authoritarian regimes."

It was unclear exactly why the teen was detained.

Gov. JB Pritzker again slammed ICE and the Trump administration for the tactics used in Chicago.

"ICE is recklessly throwing tear gas into our neighborhoods and busy streets, including near children at school and CPD officers," Pritzker said in a post on X. "The Trump Administration must stop their deployment of dangerous chemical weapons into the air of peaceful American communities."

What's next:

The incident remains under investigation.