A newly hired police officer in Hanover Park, Illinois, was taken into custody by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement early Thursday, accused of living in the country illegally. for the past ten years.
Federal agents say 36-year-old Radule Bojovic, originally from Montenegro, overstayed his tourist visa, which expired in 2015. He was supposed to be sworn in as a Hanover Park police officer later that evening during a village board meeting.
According to the Department of Homeland Security, Bojovic was arrested during a targeted enforcement effort called “Operation Midway Blitz,” which focused on the Chicago area. Officials also confirmed that Bojovic had been approved by the village pension fund board in January 2025, and a Facebook post from August shows him celebrating his graduation from a suburban law enforcement academy.
In a statement released Thursday, DHS criticized Illinois leaders, saying, “Governor J.B. Pritzker doesn’t just allow violent illegal aliens to terrorize Illinois’s communities, he allows illegal aliens to work as sworn police officers. Radule Bojovic violated our nation’s laws and was living illegally in the United States for 10 years.”
DHS Secretary Kristi Noem echoed the sentiment online, posting, “ICE arrested an illegal alien working as a sworn police officer in a Chicago suburb. Radical sanctuary politicians have allowed criminal illegal aliens to infiltrate our school districts, communities, and even police departments.”
The Hanover Park Police Department quickly issued its own statement defending the hiring process. The department said Bojovic was hired in January 2025 “in full compliance with federal and state law.” Officials said the village verified his eligibility to work through the federal government’s U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. Bojovic reportedly presented a valid and recently renewed Work Authorization Card when he was hired, and his background checks with both the Illinois State Police and the FBI came back clear.
“The bottom line is that all information we received from the federal government indicated that Officer Bojovic is legally authorized to work in the United States as a police officer,” the department said. “Clearly, without that authorization, the Village would not have hired him.”
The statement added that the village never received any notice from federal or state agencies suggesting his work authorization had been revoked. Officials also pointed to a memo from the Department of Justice’s Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, issued in January 2024, confirming that his immigration status permitted him to carry a firearm while on duty.
For now, Officer Bojovic has been placed on administrative leave while immigration proceedings move forward. “If he is permitted to remain in the United States and remains legally authorized to work in this country, he will be returned to full duty status,” the statement concluded.
The arrest has sparked outrage among federal officials and confusion in the local community, raising questions about how someone allegedly in the country unlawfully could pass multiple layers of screening to become a police officer.