He soon noticed that the rest of his family had also been doused, including his daughter, who appeared to struggle to breathe. The family subsequently received medical treatment, he said.
“I didn’t really have to go through this,” Veraza said. “My daughter neither had to go through this.”
The Department of Homeland Security, which oversees Ice, said on X that its agents do not pepper-spray children and that the alleged event did not occur in a Sam’s Club parking lot.
The department added that “rioters” had thrown objects at agents and blocked the road during an operation. Ice referred to the DHS statement in response to an overnight request for comment.
Ice has been accused of overstepping its authority in recent crackdowns in Chicago that the Trump Administration has labelled “Operation Midway Blitz”.
A federal judge last week issued a preliminary injunction that bans immigration officers involved in the operation from using tear gas or pepper spray on those who don’t pose a threat.
The judge, Sara Ellis, singled out Gregory Bovino, a senior US Border Patrol commander overseeing the operation, as she gave her decision, saying that Bovino “admitted that he lied” about getting struck in the head by a rock before deploying tear gas, the Washington Post reported.
The alleged incident involving Veraza unfolded on a day of heightened tensions in the Chicago area, as Ice agents conducted operations throughout the city.
Homeland Security said immigration agents were shot at by “an unknown male driving a black Jeep” at a location about 3.2km east of the Sam’s Club, the department said.
The male, who is from Mexico and has prior convictions for possession of a weapon and illegal entry, among other charges, has since been arrested, according to the department.
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