Chicago officials spread false claim ICE raided school: 'A misunderstanding'

Chicago Public Schools and Gov. JB Pritzker (D) spread false claims last week that President Donald Trump's Immigration and Customs Enforcement attempted to raid an elementary school.

On Friday, Chicago Public Schools Chief Education Officer Bogdana Chkoumbova told local reporters that ICE agents "showed up" at Hamline Elementary School.

'Agents identified themselves to the school principal and provided business cards with their contact information.'

Chkoumbova explained that "school staff followed CPS established protocols" by keeping "ICE agents outside of the school" and contacting the district's law department and Office of Safety and Security.

"The ICE agents were not allowed into the school and were not permitted to speak to any students or staff members. Here is the bottom line: Our students and staff are safe," Chkoumbova stated. "We will not coordinate with Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents."

Hamline Principal Natasha Ortega repeated the same claim during the Friday press conference.

"We will not open our doors for ICE, and we are here to protect our children," Ortega stated.

Chicago Public Schools Chief Executive Officer Pedro Martinez told MSNBC that agents "presented credentials and shared that they were from ICE."

"We've been training our principals, our security guards, any front office staff ... making sure that they know that we are not to share any information with anybody from the immigration department or ICE. Unless they have a judicial order, they're not even allowed to enter the building," Martinez added.

Pritzker amplified the false claims in a post on X, writing, "After a week of Republicans sowing fear and chaos, the first reports of raids in Chicago are at an elementary school. Targeting children and separating families is cruel and un-American."

On Saturday, Chicago Public Schools officials backtracked on their earlier allegations, declaring there was a "misunderstanding."

Martinez and Chkoumbova stated, "Agents presented school staff with credentials from the Department of Homeland Security, the federal department that oversees Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE)."

"We later learned that these officials were not from ICE, but rather from the U.S. Secret Service — a different federal law enforcement agency also overseen by the Department of Homeland Security," their statement continued. "While this incident was due to a misunderstanding, it reflects the fear and anxiety that is present in our city right now, and it reflects the degree of caution that we are taking given recent federal policy changes."

"Despite yesterday's misunderstanding, the school's response demonstrates that our school system, in partnership with community organizations and our labor partners, is prepared and ready to keep our students and staff safe," they added.

Pritzker has not provided an updated statement regarding the incident, and his team did not respond to a request for comment from Fox News Digital.

Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson (D) posted on X, "Chicago will always be a welcoming city, and we will always uphold the welcoming city ordinance, and we will always protect our students and every resident of our city."

"Today Secret Service agents, not ICE, were present at John H. Hamline Elementary School. While people across the city are worried about heightened immigration enforcement, it is imperative that individuals not spread unverified information that sparks fear across the city," Johnson wrote.

ICE stated that it did not send its officers to the school and the agency was in no way involved in the incident.

Anthony Guglielmi, chief of communications for the U.S. Secret Service, confirmed Secret Service agents were sent to the elementary school on Friday while "investigating a threat made against a government official we protect."

"In the course of their investigation, agents first visited a residence in a local neighborhood and then made a visit to Hamline Elementary School," Guglielmi stated. "Agents identified themselves to the school principal and provided business cards with their contact information. The agents left without incident. The Secret Service investigates all threats made against those we protect. We do not investigate nor enforce immigration laws."

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