U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents arrested Giovanna Mercedes Moreno Occhipinti, a 32-year-old former teacher from Illinois, on May 13, 2026. Occhipinti, who is from Venezuela and holds dual citizenship in Italy, was living in the U.S. illegally after overstaying her Visa Waiver Program entry in October 2021.
She is alleged to have been involved in a mass shooting on December 2, 2024, in which three people were killed and five others injured at a house party in Chicago. Authorities claim that Occhipinti drove the two gunmen, Ricardo Granadillo Padilla and Edward Martinez Cermeno, to the crime scene. Following the incident, multiple weapons were found in her vehicle, and she is suspected of assisting the gunmen in evading law enforcement.
DHS Acting Assistant Secretary Lauren Bis criticized local sanctuary policies, stating that Occhipinti was released from police custody without notifying ICE shortly after her initial arrest on December 5, 2024, for unlawful use of weapons. The Cook County State's Attorney's office chose not to prosecute the suspects, and both Granadillo Padilla and Martinez Cermeno were eventually deported. Occhipinti is currently being held at the Grayson County Detention Center in Kentucky.