Terrifying ICE Raid in Chicago: Entire Apartment Complex Filled With Families Stormed at Dawn — “They Used a Low-Income Neighborhood to Test How They’ll Do This Everywhere”
CHICAGO, IL — A South Side neighborhood is reeling after witnesses say Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents raided an entire apartment complex before sunrise, zip-tying families — including women, children, and seniors — and forcing them into unmarked vans.
Videos and firsthand accounts shared online describe a terrifying pre-dawn operation at the South Shore Apartments, where residents say armed federal agents flooded the building, banging on doors and ordering everyone outside at gunpoint.
“They Sieged an Apartment Full of American Citizens”
TikTok user @TheRealCornPop, who first reported the raid, said the early-morning chaos felt like something out of a war zone.
@therealcornpop
“They sieged an apartment complex full of American citizens with full military gear and disappeared people from this building,” he said in his viral video, which has been viewed hundreds of thousands of times.
He added that ICE agents allegedly forced every tenant out of their apartments, handcuffing or zip-tying residents as they were led outside for questioning.
Residents Describe “Night of Terror”
Several residents told Block Club Chicago they woke up to agents breaking through doors and shouting orders.
“They had guns drawn and told us to get out,” one man said. “They didn’t tell us why — just grabbed us, zip-tied us, and pushed us into vans.”
Another tenant said he was “stuffed inside a van with his neighbors for hours” before ICE finally released them.
Residents claim those determined not to be immigrants were eventually allowed back into their units — but several Venezuelan migrants were taken away. Their whereabouts remain unknown.
“History Is Repeating Itself”
Online reaction to the raid has been explosive, with many comparing the tactics to wartime round-ups.
“Terrible things are happening outside. At any time of the night and day, poor helpless people are being dragged out of their homes,” one commenter quoted Anne Frank, calling the operation “chillingly familiar.”
Another wrote:
“They used a low-income neighborhood to test out how they’re going to do this everywhere. We should all be afraid.”
Some residents claimed one agent even muttered “F* them kids”** when asked why children were being restrained.
Federal Silence Raises Alarms
As of Monday, ICE and the Department of Homeland Security have not publicly commented on the South Shore raid. Neither local police nor city officials were reportedly notified ahead of the operation, fueling outrage among community advocates.
Activists with immigrant rights groups in Chicago are now demanding answers — and an immediate halt to federal operations in residential buildings without local warrants.
“This is a violation of civil rights,” said one organizer. “They’re using fear as a weapon, and it’s spreading through communities like wildfire.”
Growing Fear Across Illinois
This incident comes amid a rising federal push to target undocumented immigrants nationwide. Illinois residents say they now fear similar raids could soon expand to other low-income neighborhoods in Chicago and beyond.
“They started here because it’s poor families,” one neighbor said. “But if they can do it here, they can do it anywhere.”
Do you think ICE should face legal action for raids like this one, or are they just enforcing the law? Share your thoughts in the comments on FatCityFeed.com.
