Dupage Policy Journal

A Montenegrin national who reportedly overstayed his visa and was living in the U.S. illegally has been arrested by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) while working as a sworn police officer in Hanover Park.

Radule Bojovic, 33, was taken into custody by ICE during a targeted enforcement action. According to ICE, Bojovic entered the United States on a B-2 tourist visa that expired in March 2015 and remained in the country without legal status for more than a decade.

The arrest has prompted scrutiny of local and state law enforcement hiring practices and raised broader questions about immigration enforcement and background checks.

Police ID of Radule Bojovic, the Hanover Park officer arrested by ICE for allegedly living in the U.S. illegally for over a decade. | Facebook / Greg Krawchuk

Hanover Park, located in both DuPage and Cook counties, hired Bojovic as a police officer earlier this year. ICE said Bojovic had been approved by the Hanover Park Pension Fund Board and received more than $205,000 in compensation in 2025, including salary, benefits, and nearly $10,000 in employer-paid FICA and Medicare taxes.

DuPage County Republican Party Chairman Kevin Coyne said the arrest highlights gaps in immigration policy.

“The arrest of Hanover Park police officer Radule Bojovic exposes the failures in America's immigration system in stark terms,” Coyne told the DuPage Policy Journal. “These failures demand urgent action and reform. Bojovic entered the U.S. on a tourist visa that expired in 2015, yet he was sworn in as a full-fledged officer with a badge, gun, and salary. How many more cases like this are out there?”

“Our immigration system has been broken for far too long and far too many people have been allowed to enter our country without proper vetting,” Coyne said. “While the DuPage GOP greatly appreciates the importance and value immigration has to America and to our history, people have to come here legally.”

ICE officials said Bojovic’s arrest was part of Operation Midway Blitz, a statewide immigration enforcement initiative that has resulted in more than 1,500 arrests. The operation was launched in memory of Katie Abraham, a 20-year-old student killed in a 2024 hit-and-run crash involving an undocumented immigrant.

Footage of the arrest was captured by Ben Bergquam, founder of FrontlineAmerica.com and host of Law and Border, who was present at the time. In the video, Bojovic said he had recently graduated from the police academy and began working as an officer on Jan. 8. He also stated he had work authorization but acknowledged he could not legally carry a firearm off duty.

"The problem is he's not even a citizen," Bergquam said in the video. "So he can't own a firearm legally in our country. But he's being given a firearm by the state of Illinois as a police officer in the state. And apparently they just require work authorization in this state. That is insane."

ICE officials said Bojovic’s possession of a firearm was a violation of federal law. 

In a statement, ICE Enforcement and Removal Operations Chicago Field Office Director Sam Olson said: 

“Illegal aliens are prohibited from owning or possessing firearms — full stop. This is the second known instance in recent months of a local police department hiring an illegal alien and unlawfully issuing him a firearm while on duty in violation of federal law.”

In 2023, Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker signed legislation allowing some noncitizens with legal status to become police officers. Bojovic’s arrest drew criticism from some officials involved with Operation Midway Blitz, who said the case highlights breakdowns in the system.

“Pritzker doesn’t just allow violent illegal aliens to terrorize Illinois’s communities, he allows illegal aliens to work as sworn police officers,” Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin said in a press release. “Radule Bojovic violated our nation’s laws and was living illegally in the United States for 10 years—what kind of police department gives criminal illegal aliens badges and guns?”

In a public statement, the Village of Hanover Park said Bojovic was hired in “full compliance with federal and state law.” The village said Bojovic presented a valid and recently renewed federal Work Authorization Card issued by U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) and that the village received no notice of revocation from any federal agency.

Hanover Park Village President Rodney Craig addressed the incident at a board meeting held Oct. 16, the same night Bojovic was scheduled to be formally sworn in.

“We performed all necessary due diligence and followed the law throughout the hiring process,” Craig said. “If Officer Bojovic did not hold federal work authorization, he would not have been hired. We received no notice from any federal agency indicating that his authorization was revoked.”

The Hanover Park Police Department confirmed Bojovic graduated from the Suburban Law Enforcement Academy in August.

Bojovic is currently being held at the Clay County Justice Center in Brazil, Indiana. He has been placed on administrative leave pending the outcome of immigration proceedings.

The Village of Hanover Park said if he is ultimately authorized to remain in the United States, he may return to duty.