Chicago Carpenter Acquitted, Faces Deportation

A Chicago carpenter acquitted last week of charges that he offered a $10,000 bounty to harm a U.S. Border Patrol commander was detained by federal immigration authorities within 24 hours of his release and now faces deportation proceedings, his attorneys confirmed Tuesday.

Juan Espinoza Martinez, 37, was found not guilty on a single count of murder-for-hire following a brief trial in federal court. The jury deliberated for less than four hours before reaching its verdict. Espinoza Martinez, a married father of three who works as a carpenter, was arrested in October 2023 amid a federal immigration enforcement operation in the Chicago area.

According to court records, prosecutors alleged that Espinoza Martinez sent Snapchat messages to his brother and a longtime government informant, including one that read in part, "10k if u take him down," accompanied by a photo of Gregory Bovino, a Border Patrol official who has overseen enforcement actions across the country, including in the Chicago region. The messages were part of an investigation tied to heightened tensions over immigration raids.

Espinoza Martinez was born in Mexico and brought to the United States as a young child, as...