The Department of Homeland Security criticized Illinois Governor JB Pritzker and state officials for releasing a convicted child sex offender despite an Immigration and Customs Enforcement detainer.

ICE officers arrested Erik Giovanni-Quiroa, a Guatemalan national who entered the United States illegally in 2002, on April 22, 2026, during a targeted vehicle stop in Chicago. The man had refused commands to stop and briefly fled before being taken into custody. He remains in ICE custody pending removal proceedings.

Giovanni-Quiroa was convicted in 2025 of aggravated sexual abuse of a five-year-old child and sentenced to three years in prison. He also served a 16-year sentence for a 2011 conviction of aggravated battery with a firearm. ICE had lodged a detainer with the Illinois Department of Corrections, but the state released him into the community.

DHS Acting Assistant Secretary Lauren Bis condemned the release in a statement on May 1, 2026. "It is shameful that Governor Pritzker and his Illinois sanctuary politicians chose to RELEASE a pedophile from jail back into our communities," she said. Bis called on Pritzker to end the practice and honor ICE detainers.

The incident stems from Illinois' TRUST Act, signed into law in 2017 by then-Governor Bruce Rauner. The law restricts state and local resources for civil immigration enforcement, including detainers, which courts have ruled are requests rather than mandates. Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul issued a memo reaffirming the policy, noting it does not impede actions for public safety.

In December 2025, then-Acting ICE Director Todd Lyons wrote to Raoul, urging Illinois to honor detainers for more than 4,000 criminal noncitizens in state custody, including those convicted of murder, sexual offenses, and weapons crimes. Lyons argued that ignoring detainers endangers public safety.

DHS has repeatedly highlighted similar cases amid ongoing debates over sanctuary policies. Bis told Fox News that Pritzker's approach prioritizes criminal immigrants over citizens and questioned why there is no investigation into state policies enabling such releases.

Illinois officials have maintained that the TRUST Act aligns with federal court rulings, such as a 2019 decision in Jimenez-Moreno v. Napolitano, which found issues with ICE detainer practices. No immediate response from Pritzker's office was available to DHS criticisms in this case.

The arrest underscores tensions between federal immigration enforcement and state sanctuary measures, with DHS emphasizing risks to communities from released offenders.