By Tess Kenny
Chicago Tribune
HANOVER PARK, Ill. — The Hanover Park police officer arrested by federal immigration officers earlier this fall amid Operation Midway Blitz returned to work Monday, village officers introduced.
Hanover Park had positioned Officer Radule Bojovic on go away after U.S. Customs and Immigration Enforcement officers arrested the Montenegro native in mid-October for allegedly overstaying a B2 vacationer visa that expired in March 2015. However, the village, in flip, has maintained that Bojovic was approved to work within the nation.
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Citing that authorization, Hanover Park police in a news launch Tuesday acknowledged that Bojovic returned to full-duty standing this week as he awaits the result of his courtroom proceedings.
After his arrest, Bojovic was launched on bond on Oct. 31, based on the village.
“Given that his bond was not contested and he remains authorized to work by the federal government, the Hanover Park Police Department determined that he may return to work,” the discharge acknowledged.
According to village information obtained by the Tribune by means of a Freedom of Information Act Request, Hanover Park apparently had two work authorization playing cards on file for Bojovic. It is unclear when the playing cards have been issued or what their expiration dates are because of village redactions on information.
Alongside the division’s assertion, a police spokesperson stated neither Bojovic nor village officers have been taking requests for additional remark.
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security didn’t instantly return a request for a remark.
At the time of Bojovic’s arrest, village officers maintained the police division employed Bojovic in January “in full compliance with federal and state law.” State information present that Bojovic was employed Jan. 8 and licensed by the Illinois Law Enforcement Training and Standards Board in August.
Before bringing Bojovic onto its police power, the village acknowledged that it had confirmed he was legally approved by the federal authorities to work within the U.S., noting that when he was employed, he supplied the village with a piece authorization card. Village officers have additionally acknowledged that they haven’t acquired any discover that his card had ever been revoked.
According to an employment utility Bojovic submitted to the village in June 2024, he attended highschool in Chicago and beforehand labored at a church as a janitor and at Ross, village information present.
In response to an utility query asking why he needed to grow to be a Hanover Park police officer, Bojovic wrote: “I’m motivated by a strong desire to serve and protect the community. I’m drawn to the opportunity to make a meaningful difference in people’s lives, ensuring safety and fostering trust.”
When the administration of President Donald Trump introduced its native mass deportation mission in early September, it got here with guarantees to “target the worst of the worst criminal illegal aliens” within the metropolis.
But newly launched knowledge analyzed by the Tribune reveals that of the roughly 1,900 immigrants that brokers booked within the first half of Operation Midway Blitz, two-thirds had no recognized prison convictions or pending fees.
Nearly 1,900 immigrants have been detained through the first half of Operation Midway Blitz. Most had no prison file.
Background checks into Bojovic by each Illinois State Police and the FBI yielded no prison historical past, per Hanover Park police.
The division, in an Aug. 22 submit to Facebook, congratulated Bojovic on graduating from the Suburban Law Enforcement Academy. The academy, a program out of the College of DuPage in west suburban Glen Ellyn, goals to arrange “recruits for a successful career in law enforcement,” based on the school’s web site. It presents a 16-week coaching program primarily based on curriculum permitted by the Illinois Law Enforcement Training and Standards Board, per program particulars listed on-line.
According to Illinois Law Enforcement Training & Standards Board information supplied to the Tribune, Bojovic accomplished 640 hours of primary coaching and 40 hours of obligatory firearms coaching between May 5 and Aug. 22.
After graduating from the Suburban Law Enforcement Academy, Hanover Park police in its August Facebook submit acknowledged Bojovic was set to start an “intensive 15 weeks of field training and evaluation as he continues preparing to serve the Hanover Park community.”
Now again to full-duty, Bojovic will obtain again pay from the village for the time he was on go away.
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tkenny@chicagotribune.com
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