U.S. Attorney’s Office and Other DOJ Components Provide Update on Increased Federal Prosecutions and Ongoing Strategies to Combat Violent Crime in Chicago

CHICAGO — Andrew S. Boutros, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois, today provided an update on increased federal prosecutions and strategies implemented to combat violent crime in Chicago and the surrounding area.  This announcement comes after the government just reopened following the longest government shutdown in U.S. history as well as the largest ever enforcement surge in the Northern District of Illinois—commonly referred to as “Operation Midway Blitz”—a U.S. immigration enforcement operation launched by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).

This is a joint statement made with the other Department of Justice law enforcement components, namely, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF), U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), and U.S. Marshals Service (USMS).

“Combatting the epidemic of gun crime and violence is a national priority for this Department of Justice, and it is a top priority of mine as U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois,” said U.S. Attorney Boutros.  “It is for that reason that I have invested substantial resources into our Violent Crimes Section while demonstrating with action that we will strongly support our law enforcement partners and accept their most significant cases for federal prosecution.  The results are not only a deepening of relationships with our federal, state, and local law enforcement partners, but also a dramatic increase in our prosecutions and high-impact matters,” U.S. Attorney Boutros continued.

For example, this year, federal firearm indictments under the U.S. Attorney’s Office’s Project Safe Neighborhoods (“PSN”) program are up 292% in the Northern District of Illinois compared to last year (through Oct. 31, 2025).  The number of defendants charged in PSN firearm indictments is up 287% compared to last year (through Oct. 31, 2025).  The PSN program is an evidence-based program that focuses enforcement efforts on the most violent offenders while bringing together a broad spectrum of stakeholders to identify the most pressing violent crime problems and develop comprehensive solutions to address them.  One such problem is violence in Chicago’s downtown neighborhoods and public rail system.  As such, in June of this year, U.S. Attorney Boutros announced an expansion of PSN to include the economic centers in downtown Chicago and the entire rail system operated by the Chicago Transit Authority, including all train lines operating in every neighborhood from every part of the city.  The expansion implemented the program in parts of three Chicago Police districts in downtown financial zones that represent the economic engines of the city and region, as well as on the CTA trains that bring residents and visitors to those areas from every neighborhood of Chicago and from the city’s two international airports.  The expansion by U.S. Attorney Boutros represented the first time anywhere in the country that the PSN program was deployed on mass transit and the first time in Chicago that the city’s downtown economic corridors were given the federal PSN designation.

In addition, firearm investigations in Chicago have been substantially bolstered by a game-changing resource from ATF—the Crime Gun Intelligence Center of Chicago.  The CGIC is a centralized law enforcement hub that focuses exclusively on investigating and preventing gun violence in Chicago and throughout northern Illinois.  Every single gun case in the Northern District of Illinois is processed through ATF’s CGIC on a daily basis. This swift and thorough review and intake process is made possible because the CGIC is an interagency collaboration that brings together federal, state, and local law enforcement officers, prosecutors, and intelligence analysts to move quickly to investigate and prosecute violent crimes, and especially gun crimes.

The increase in federal firearm indictments corresponds to increased prosecutions as well as other high-impact cases across the various federal programs.  Overall, federal criminal indictments in all program areas in the Northern District of Illinois in 2025 are up 45% (366 versus 252) compared to last year (through Oct. 31, 2025).  The number of defendants charged in all program areas in 2025 is up 52% (494 versus 325) compared to last year (through Oct. 31, 2025).

“A fundamental duty of our Office is to tackle crimes across the various federal program areas that we service,” said U.S. Attorney Boutros.  “That applies to narco-terrorism and terrorism cases, drug and gun trafficking organizations, public corruption, organized crime, money laundering, child-exploitation and human trafficking cases, cybercrimes, assaults on Postal Employees and other federal officers and personnel, as well as program fraud, healthcare fraud, and otherwise.  We are committed to investigating and prosecuting federal criminal cases on behalf of all of our law enforcement partners to disrupt the cycle of ongoing crime in Chicago.”

The increased prosecutions are part of a turnaround that is occurring under U.S. Attorney Boutros, who inherited an Office that was down some 50 prosecutors.  The Criminal Division had also dipped below 90 criminal prosecutors for the first time in decades.  “The impressive results we have been able to achieve in 2025 as an Office have been accomplished with far fewer prosecutors and resources than the Office has experienced in decades,” said U.S. Attorney Boutros.  “This is also true for the caseloads we are handling in our Civil Division.  I am proud of the hard work and dedication of our prosecutors in the Civil Division who are handling a heavy docket that is only growing heavier with fewer resources. After an extended government shutdown and many months of a hiring freeze, I am energized by the fact that we are hiring several dozens of new Assistant U.S. Attorneys in the Criminal and Civil Divisions in the coming months.  Many of our new hires will come with significant experience, including decades of federal and/or state prosecutorial experience from across the country and locally and will be able to hit the ground running,” said U.S. Attorney Boutros.  “I am very much looking forward to onboarding our new tough-on-crime prosecutors who will contribute mightily to the Office in the critically important work we do every day.  I am very optimistic about our Office’s future, especially as we add to our already talented roster of attorneys and staff who work diligently every day to make our communities better.”

“Through the Crime Gun Intelligence Center of Chicago (CGIC) partnership, we have made a significant impact on reducing violent crime in Chicago,” said Christopher Amon, Special Agent-in-Charge of the ATF Chicago Field Division.  “Increased federal prosecutions under the leadership of U.S. Attorney Boutros have been instrumental in ensuring that violent offenders are swiftly brought to justice.  ATF will remain focused on its top priority: tackling violent crime and taking drivers of violence off our streets.”

“The FBI works to ensure that the threat of violent crime does not endanger the livelihood or safety of the hardworking people in this great city,” said Douglas S. DePodesta, Special Agent-in-Charge of the FBI Chicago Field Office.  “Thanks to the outstanding collaboration within the network of law enforcement and prosecutorial partners in Project Safe Neighborhoods, our communities are safer and more well-resourced than ever.  The FBI remains committed to developing proactive solutions and holding accountable anyone who seeks to compromise the safety of those who live in or visit Chicago.”

“The DEA Chicago Field Division will continue leveraging all resources at our disposal to combat drug-related violent crime,” said Shane R. Catone, Special Agent-in-Charge of the DEA Chicago Field Division.  “Disrupting and dismantling violent drug trafficking organizations and their supply chains is crucial to keeping Americans safe. Alongside our federal, state, and local law enforcement and prosecutorial partners, the DEA will continue to relentlessly pursue accountability of violent drug traffickers inflicting harm upon our communities throughout Illinois.”

“Criminal violence of any kind—including assaults and attacks on federal agents and other government personnel—are unacceptable,” said LaDon A. Reynolds, United States Marshal for the Northern District of Illinois.  “The U.S. Marshals Service will investigate and seek to hold accountable people who break the law with violence.  U.S. Attorney Boutros has been a strong and reliable partner in our efforts, and we look forward to continuing to closely work with him and his team.”