A former Illinois teacher illegally living in the United States was arrested for her alleged involvement in the Tren de Aragua mass shooting that killed three people, officials said on Monday, June 22.
Giovanna Mercedes Moreno Occhipinti, a 32 year old illegal immigrant originally from Venezuela, has been in the custody of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) since May 13, according to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). Occhipinti came to the in the United States October 2021 and later overstayed her visa, which expired in January of 2021.
Occhipinti allegedly drove the two shooters, Ricardo Granadillo Padilla and Edward Martinez Cermeno, to a Chicago house party on December 2, 2024, where the crime took place. That night, five people were injured and three were killed.
“Giovanna Mercedes Moreno Occhipinti’s actions were calculated and deliberate, leading to the loss of three lives,” said the HSI Chicago Special Agent in Charge Matthew Scarpino. Authorities found multiple weapons in Occhipinti’s car after the shooting, and they believe she helped Granadillo Padilla and Martinez Cermeno evade law enforcement until the two were eventually deported in 2025.
On December 5, 2024, the Chicago Police Department arrested and charged Occhipinti for unlawful use of weapons and other weapon offenses, but she was later released under Chicago’s sanctuary policies. These policies protect illegal immigrants from federal immigration authorities by preventing local law enforcement from notifying ICE when an illegal alien criminal has been taken into custody.
Occhipinti is currently being held in Leitchfield, Kentucky, at the Grayson County Detention Center.
“Under President Trump and Secretary Mullin, DHS is doing the job that sanctuary politicians in Illinois refuse to do: putting the American people first and removing these dangerous criminals from our communities,” said the DHS Acting Assistant Secretary Lauren Bis.
Occhipinti taught at a school in Elgin, a Chicago suburb, but officials refuse to disclose the institution’s name, DHS told Fox News.
“I’m thankful that the victims and their families finally get the justice they deserve,” said the DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin. “Tren de Aragua is one of the most vicious gangs on planet earth. They rape, maim, and murder for sport. Under President Trump’s leadership, we are targeting and removing gang members from our communities and ensuring those that committed crimes in our country face justice.”
Members of Tren de Aragua, a prison gang from Venezuela, entered the United States in droves during former President Joe Biden’s administration, when federal authorities were instructed to release illegal border crossers into the nation’s interior en masse. The gang proceeded to create footholds across the country, setting up sex trafficking rings, carrying out apartment takeovers, and committing murders.
Jose Ibarra, a member of the violent gang, was convicted of the high-profile murder of Georgia nursing student Laken Riley.
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