ICE operation 'Midway Blitz' will honor woman killed in Urbana crash

DECATUR, Ill. (WAND) - The U.S. Department of Homeland Security said it's starting operation 'Midway Blitz' in Chicago to target "criminal illegal aliens."

The operation, according to Homeland Security, is in honor of Katie Abraham, who was killed in a drunk driving hit-and-run crash in Urbana earlier this year.

Julio Cucul Bol was arrested several days later in connection with the crime. Police said at the time that Bol provided false information, and police believed he was a Mexican National. Bol later admitted he was a citizen of Guatemala, according to police.

In January, Urbana police said Bol was driving an SUV when he rear-ended a car that was slowing down at a traffic light on University Avenue at Coler Avenue.

Five people were in the car and two were killed: 20-year-old Abraham and 21-year-old Chloe Polzin.

Abraham was from Glenview, IL, and her parents recently appeared in a video about their daughter's death in an HHS YouTube video. Polzin was from Deerfield, IL.

HHS said its Chicago operation is in response to Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker's policies that "released Tren de Aragua gang members, rapists, kidnappers, and drug traffickers on Chicago’s streets—putting American lives at risk and making Chicago a magnet for criminals."

HHS said Pritzker and other politicians harbor criminals with "sanctuary policies."

Pritzker responded on his X account, "Once again, this isn't about fighting crime," Pritzker posted. "That requires support and coordination — yet we've experienced nothing like that over the past several weeks."

Pritzker said the Trump Administration is focused on scaring Illinoisians.

ICE efforts in Chicago follow other operations in Los Angeles, Washington D.C. and Baltimore. Some of those operations have involved National Guard Troops, however it's not clear if Operation Midway Blitz will involve any troops.

A Pritzker spokesman said in an email to WAND News that the Governor's Office has not received any formal communication from the Trump Administration on ICE operations in Chicago, instead learning of operations through the media.