From Maracaibo, Venezuela, 35-year-old Genesis Adriana Gutierrez Morales spoke with anger and sorrow about her 31-year-old nephew, Luis Jesus Acosta Gutierrez, after federal agents spent hours trying to take him into custody in Elgin. Roughly 2,400 miles away from the scene, she said she and her family have been hurt by public statements that label him a criminal and have damaged his reputation.
Morales described Acosta Gutierrez as hardworking, religious and generous, saying she helped raise him after his mother died of cancer. She said he left Maracaibo about two years ago seeking work and to send money home to support family members and his two young children, now 7 and 9. “It’s the story of one more Venezuelan, one more Latino,” she said, framing his migration as part of a common search for better opportunities.
U.S. Department of Homeland Security officials have identified Acosta Gutierrez as a suspected member of the Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua, a group the U.S. designated this year as a foreign terrorist organization. DHS also says he resisted arrest and intentionally struck an officer’s vehicle into a tree. Family members and their attorney dispute that account, saying agents rammed his car and that he fled because he feared for his safety.
Local attorney and activist Robert Held, who is representing Acosta Gutierrez, said his client was driving to have his car repaired when agents tried to stop him. Held said agents struck the vehicle twice and that Acosta Gutierrez drove away out of fear. According to Held, the man later made his way to an apartment building on Maple Lane and barricaded himself on an outdoor balcony as more than a dozen federal agents tried to take him into custody.
DHS provides a different version, saying agents attempted a vehicle stop and that Acosta Gutierrez rammed a law-enforcement vehicle. A DHS spokesperson declined to release detailed evidence linking him to Tren de Aragua, saying agency intelligence “goes well beyond just gang affiliate tattoos and social media” and that releasing specifics could harm national security.
The confrontation began shortly after 9 a.m. Saturday on the 1600 block of West Highland Avenue and drew a large and vocal crowd. By mid-afternoon roughly 30 agents were negotiating while an estimated 200 residents and onlookers gathered. Videos and witness accounts show clashes between agents and protesters — officers tackling at least one demonstrator, the use of tear gas and pepper balls, and, later, agents deploying pepper spray and flash-bang devices as they exited the scene. Authorities reportedly arrested Acosta Gutierrez inside an apartment around 3:30 p.m.; videos captured people throwing snowballs at agents and vehicles afterward.
A Tribune review of local court records turned up no criminal cases under Acosta Gutierrez’s name. Records show only a 2023 traffic fine for driving without a license that was closed in April 2024, according to McHenry County files. ICE records indicate Acosta Gutierrez is currently detained in Clay County, Indiana.
The arrest comes amid broader federal enforcement actions targeting members and associates of Tren de Aragua; in September, agents carried out a predawn raid on Chicago’s South Side citing ties to the group, though reporting noted no public criminal charges had been filed in relation to that operation. Morales and Held emphasize that Acosta Gutierrez worked as an Uber driver and a painter, not as a gang member, and Held said his client suffered facial injuries when federal agents arrested him. DHS did not directly address the allegation of rough treatment in its public response, referring instead to prior statements.
Speaking from Maracaibo, Morales said she has been comforted by messages from people who witnessed the protest in Elgin and reached out to say her nephew was not alone. She expressed frustration at being unable to help from abroad but gratitude for the community support: “Because together we are stronger,” she said.
