Archive · 10 Nov 2025
US Border Patrol Accused of Pepper-Spraying Baby and Father in Chicago
Imagine police officers doing a big job to find people who have come into the country without permission.
During this job, a dad and his baby girl were in their car in a parking lot.
The dad said that the police officers sprayed pepper spray into their car, and it made it hard for him and his baby to breathe and made their eyes hurt.
The dad is also sick and has trouble breathing sometimes.
But, the police department said they did not use pepper spray in that parking lot.
They said that a group of people attacked them with shooting, throwing things, and even trying to drive cars into them.
The police think these people were angry protesters.
This happened around the same time a judge made new rules about how police can use force.
A father, Rafael Veraza, and his one-year-old daughter, Arianna, allege they were pepper-sprayed by US Border Patrol agents in a Chicago-area parking lot.
The incident occurred on Saturday morning in Cicero, Illinois, during a federal immigration enforcement operation called Operation Midway Blitz.
Veraza, who has asthma, stated that both he and his daughter struggled to breathe and experienced eye irritation due to the pepper spray.
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) denies that pepper spray was deployed in the Sam's Club parking lot, claiming their agents faced hostile attacks including gunfire and vehicle ramming.
The event follows recent attempts by ICE and CBP to locate and arrest undocumented immigrants in the Chicago area and comes before new restrictions on federal agents' use of force.
- Who
- US Border Patrol agents, Rafael Veraza, and his one-year-old daughter, Arianna.
- What
- An incident where a father and his infant daughter were allegedly pepper-sprayed by federal agents during an immigration enforcement operation.
- When
- Saturday morning, November 9, 2025.
- Where
- In the parking lot of a Sam's Club store in Cicero, Illinois, during Operation Midway Blitz.
- Why
- The father claims the pepper spray was used on them while they were in their car. The DHS states their agents faced attacks including gunfire and vehicle ramming from a hostile crowd.
Victim's Account
Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Account
Pepper Spray Deployment
Victim's Account
Rafael Veraza states that Border Patrol agents sprayed him and his one-year-old daughter, Arianna, as they sat in their car in the Sam's Club parking lot, causing them breathing difficulties and eye irritation.
Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Account
The DHS denies using pepper spray in the parking lot, stating no crowd control or pepper spray was deployed there.
Nature of Encounter
Victim's Account
Veraza and his daughter were allegedly pepper-sprayed while sitting in their car during an operation.
Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Account
DHS claims agents faced attacks including gunfire, bricks thrown from rooftops, and vehicles being rammed by a hostile crowd.
- Incident Date
- Saturday morning, November 9, 2025
- Location
- Sam's Club parking lot in Cicero, Illinois (near Chicago's Little Village neighborhood)
- Alleged Victims
- Rafael Veraza and his one-year-old daughter, Arianna
- Alleged Perpetrators
- US Border Patrol agents
- Official DHS Statement
- Denies pepper spray deployment in the parking lot; cites attacks on agents including gunfire and vehicle ramming.
- Veraza's Health Condition
- Asthmatic
- Arrests Made
- At least nine protesters taken into federal custody, according to the National Lawyers Guild's Chicago.
