CHICAGO — Immigration enforcement agents have arrested a Venezuelan gang member who’s suspected of participating in a mass shooting here in Chicago, according to federal authorities.
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents arrested Ricardo Padillia-Granadillo, 24, in Raleigh, NC, over the weekend, the agency said in a press release, adding that Granadillo was “illegally present” in the United States. Investigators found a gun, ammunition, and “10 other Venezuelan aliens” in the house where Granadillo was arrested, said the press release.
The agency said Granadillo is a “suspected member of the Tren de Aragua gang and a suspect in a mass shooting in Chicago.”
Officials did not provide details about the mass shooting. However, eight migrants were shot, three fatally, during a house party in Gage Park in December. Federal officials have offered a $10,000 reward for information about that case.
Last month, three women were shot in a South Shore alley, two fatally. CWBChicago reported that the women were all believed to be migrants who may have been trafficked. However, law enforcement agencies loosely define a “mass shooting” as an incident involving four or more victims.
Granadillo was already wanted on federal charges for illegally entering the US, according to ICE. He entered the country illegally near El Paso on October 1, 2022, and was released with a “notice to appear,” the agency said.
“He failed to show up for his immigration appointment scheduled for Sept. 12, 2024, and the U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Texas issued an arrest warrant,” according to the federal press release.
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