DHS Arrests Alleged Latin Kings Member for Placing Bounty on CBP Chief

By “El Huaso” for Borderland Beat

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has arrested and charged an alleged Latin Kings gang member with offering a bounty for the killing of high ranking Border Patrol Chief Gregory Bovino. 

DHS arrested Juan Espinoza Martinez, an illegal migrant from Mexico, on October 6, 2025 in Burr Ridge, Illinois after receiving a screenshot of a Snapchat conversation where Martinez discusses payment for information about or the killing of Gregory Bovino. Authorities are not sure when Martinez entered the United States.

The screenshotted conversation with “Juan” says “2k on information when you get him” and “10k if u take him down, LK  on him” under a photo of Gregory Bovino. According to the DHS, “LK” is another reference to Latin Kings.

The criminal complaint from the U.S. District Court in Chicago charges Martinez with one count of murder-for-hire. The document further aims to establish Martinez as a decision making ranking member of the Latin Kings gang. According to a confidential informant, Martinez has the authority to order and dispatch Latin Kings members around Chicago. One example provided was sending armed members to protect Latin Kings territory near 26th Street and South Drake Avenue in Chicago.

Gregory Bovino is a high profile figure leading the Trump Administration's controversial immigration enforcement actions in Chicago. He has been in the Customs and Border Protection agency for three decades, operating around the United States and at several overseas posts. In 2020, he was appointed Chief Patrol Agent of the El Centro Sector.

A Possible Mexico Connection to Bounties?

Today, an article in the Washington Examiner reported the paper had received information from DEA via DHS indicating that some bounties for ICE agents are being ordered from Mexico. The referenced DEA report says criminal groups are offering bounties of $5,000 for an agent or officer; $10,000 for an agent or officer in a commanding role, and $50,000 for an agent or officer in a high-ranking position.

This is not the first time Mexican criminal groups have been suspected of authorizing assassinations on US federal agents. However, the timing of these threats raises their importance. So far, the Trump Administration has held back from actually striking drug labs or sending troops inside Mexico, but the killing of a federal agent by a Mexican affiliated group could provide the pretext for a kinetic response in Mexico. 

Sources: DHS Press Release, DOJ Complaint Document, Washington Examiner, CNN