Jury Selection Begins in Alleged Murder‑for‑Hire Plot Targeting Border Patrol Commander in Chicago

A federal jury is being picked in Chicago for the trial of Juan Espinoza Martinez, 37, who is charged with one count of murder‑for‑hire for allegedly offering a $10,000 bounty to kill Border Patrol commander Gregory Bovino, the public face of the Trump administration’s Operation Midway Blitz immigration crackdown. Prosecutors say Espinoza Martinez sent an October Snapchat message offering $10,000 to anyone who "take[s] him down," along with Bovino’s photo, and an additional $2,000 for information, though they recently admitted they lack evidence he is a Latin Kings "ranking member" and Judge Joan Lefkow has barred prosecutors from raising alleged gang ties at trial. Defense counsel calls the government’s evidence of murderous intent "so weak," and Espinoza Martinez, a longtime U.S. resident from Mexico without legal status who worked as a carpenter and has three children, has pleaded not guilty and remained in federal custody since his October arrest. The case is the first criminal trial arising from the Chicago‑area crackdown, where more than 4,300 people were arrested, and comes after multiple lawsuits led a federal judge to find Bovino lied under oath about alleged gang threats, fueling skepticism about some enforcement narratives even as U.S. Attorney Andrew Boutros insists putting a price on an officer’s life "can never be crossed." Bovino is not expected to testify; the trial is slated to last only a few days, with jurors to see excerpts of Espinoza Martinez’s videotaped post‑arrest interview and hear from federal agents as the government tries to secure a conviction carrying up to 10 years in prison.