The Department for Homeland Security has arrested an alleged Polish druglord who it said has been on the run in the United States for almost 25 years.
Krzysztof Panasiuk, 48, was detained in the Chicago area on Friday, as part of the Trump administration’s “Operation Midway Blitz” deportation efforts, and is in ICE custody pending deportation.
The arrest was trumpeted on social media by Trump’s most prominent immigration enforcer, Gregory Bovino, amid criticism that his “Green Army” had been targeting domestic laborers in quiet neighborhoods, but he did not name the suspect.
DHS told the Daily Beast that Panasiuk is wanted in his home country for fraud and drug dealing as part of “an organized crime group.”
The department stated that Panasiuk had entered the U.S. on a long-expired B2 tourist visa in 2001 and was subject to an Interpol ‘Red Notice.’
“U.S. Border Patrol arrested Kryzstof Panasiuk, a criminal illegal alien from Poland who has an active INTERPOL red notice,” DHS Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin told the Beast.
“He is wanted by Polish authorities for fraud, dealing illicit narcotics, and is a member of an organized crime group.
“He entered this country on a B2 visa in 2001, which expired in 2011. Panasiuk will remain in ICE custody pending removal.”
Further details of Panasiuk’s arrest—such as specific case numbers and the status of any extradition request—were not provided. But Polish police records say the Polish authorities have been seeking him for “introducing a significant amount of narcotic drugs, psychotropic substances, poppy milk or poppy straw [opium] into circulation or participating in such circulation.”
Poland’s ‘wanted’ criminals website lists Panasiuk having been born December 15, 1976, in the Eastern European country’s small northeastern lakeside town of Giżycko, along with a baby-faced photo of him.
Interpol’s website says Red Notices are alerts asking police worldwide to locate and provisionally arrest a person for extradition, surrender, or similar legal action.
They’re based on an arrest warrant or court order from the requesting country—not issued by Interpol itself—and each member country decides what legal effect to give them.
Interpol informed the Daily Beast that the Department of Justice oversees Red Notices in the United States. The Department of Justice had not responded to a request for comment at the time of publication.
With Bovino facing social media kickback for his team’s perceived heavy-handed tactics in Chicago, as videos and photos appeared to show his “Green Army” wandering around a quiet neighbourhood of Wilmette, Illinois, questioning landscape gardeners and decorators, the Border Patrol commander-in-chief pushed the message of Panasiuk’s arrest all weekend on X.
“One of the 3 Polish illegal aliens apprehended yesterday had an INTERPOL Red Notice for leading organized crime and drug trafficking in Poland,” he posted on Saturday in reply to critics. “Want him doing work in your house or a lawful American at a living wage?”
When people failed to respond to his post, Bovino followed up: “Cat got your tongue? The truth does that sometimes.”
Panasiuk’s arrest comes as “Midway Blitz” draws national attention for numbers and tactics. In its first stretch in September, nearly 550 people were arrested in the Chicago area, according to AP.
DHS Secretary Kristi Noem last week said around 3,000 arrests had been made as the operation expanded.
However, courts and watchdogs have focused on the conduct of agents led in Chicago by Bovino.
Footage and testimonies have documented pepper-ball rounds and tear-gas use, including around children and thrown by Bovino himself, around residential blocks and demonstrations, sparking litigation.
Obama-appointed Judge Sara L. Ellis had to remind Bovino that his men must show identification, issue proper warnings before arrests, and use body cameras at all times.
She even went as far as ordering Bovino to appear for daily check-ins over alleged violations of prior limits on force and identification. However, a federal appeals court paused that order on Oct. 29 pending further review.
DHS and Bovino have also come under scrutiny for their messaging and optics—including a widely mocked photo that drew “Nazi vibe” comparisons from critics, and a Fox News appearance that a ‘surprised’ Judge Ellis said contradicted the government’s appeal against his daily check-ins.
The Beast also contacted the Polish police for comment.
McLaughlin said, “Under President Trump and Secretary Noem, if you break the law, you will face the consequences. Criminal illegal aliens are not welcome in the U.S.”
The post DHS Finally Caught a Real Alleged Drug Lord in Chicago Blitz appeared first on The Daily Beast.
