Sidelined Border Patrol commander Gregory Bovino lusted for a more heavy-handed approach to immigration months before his foot soldiers started shooting people, a leaked email has revealed.
Bovino, until recently, would swagger through cities with his immigration goon squad in widespread sweeps that would often end in Border Patrol agents getting into ugly scrapes with protesters. This approach resulted in the deaths of protesters at the hands of federal agents, sparking mass protests in some cities, most notably Minneapolis.
Their deaths came after Bovino pushed back against guidance from the acting director of Immigration and Customs Enforcement to stick to “targeted operations,” according to reporting by NBC News. The network obtained an email apparently sent by Bovino to Department of Homeland Security leaders in the capital, where he complained about the acting director of ICE, Todd Lyons.
In the note, sent months before federal agents shot dead two protesters in Minneapolis, Minnesota, Bovino complained that Lyons’ preferred approach was too limp.
He wanted “Operation Midway Blitz” in Chicago to be an all-encompassing sweep, rather than targeted at individuals who had committed crimes or were known to authorities prior.
“Mr. Lyons seemed intent that CBP conduct targeted operations for at least two weeks before transitioning to full scale immigration enforcement,” Bovino wrote, referring to Customs and Border Protection, which oversees Border Patrol agents.
“I declined his suggestion. We ended the conversation shortly thereafter.”
Ten days later, Bovino got his way, and the operation devolved into agents stopping people they merely suspected of being illegal immigrants, according to a person familiar with the conversation between Bovino and Lyons.
Scenes turned ugly under Bovino as his foot soldiers clashed with protesters, and soon, two people were shot in and around Chicago. One of those people, Silverio Villegas González, 38, was killed. He was an immigrant from Mexico living in the U.S. illegally. His death came after he was shot in the neck during a traffic stop.
“Operation Midway Blitz” resulted in roughly 1,600 arrests. Bovino’s emails contradict Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem’s assertion last month that her agency only ever carried out “targeted enforcement.”
The email also revealed a rather bizarre chain of command, with Bovino saying he reported to Noem’s aide, Corey Lewandowski, and appearing to defy Lyons’ authority. “Mr. Lyons said he was in charge, and I corrected him saying I report to Corey Lewandowski,” Bovino reportedly said of the unpaid special government employee.
Bovino, Noem, and Lewandowski now find themselves sidelined after two protesters were shot dead by agents on their watch in Minneapolis last month.
Bovino has been replaced by President Trump’s border czar, Tom Homan. The DHS also suspended Bovino’s access to his social media accounts after his posting spree defending the killing of 37-year-old Alex Pretti, an ICU nurse shot and killed by Border Patrol agents.
After his axing, Trump described Bovino as an “out there guy” who “maybe wasn’t good” in Minnesota.
Under Bovino’s leadership, federal immigration operations in the state involved federal agents detaining toddlers, ripping U.S. citizens out of their homes in their underwear, and gassing both protesters…and themselves.
In addition to Pretti, agents killed 37-year-old mother Renee Good. The fatal shootings came within three weeks of each other and were separated by just a few city blocks.
The Department of Homeland Security has been contacted for comment.
The post Leaked Email Reveals Border Patrol Goon’s Jaw-Dropping Complaint About Tactics appeared first on The Daily Beast.
