More details in the investigation into allegations that several Chicago police officers engaged in sexual misconduct with at least one migrant staying at a police station emerged Tuesday during an update from the Civilian Office of Police Accountability.
"This investigation remains open and ongoing," COPA Chief Administrator Andrea Kersten said during the update. "But I can confirm that to date, we have not identified any migrants claiming to be the victim of sexual assault or any form of sexual misconduct by CPD members."
Kersten added that COPA has allocated "significant" resources to their investigation, which is being led by agency's Special Victims Squad.
"Many of these these staff have expertise in sexual misconduct investigations and many are fluent in Spanish," Kersten said, adding that the investigators' efforts included canvassing more than a dozen migrant shelters, participating in conversations with the migrant community and conducting interviews with any individuals "who have been identified or come forward as potentially having information about these allegations."
"COPA takes our responsibility to handle these sensitive investigations extremely seriously," Kersten said, noting that investigations of sexual misconduct are "complex and sensitive undertakings."
"There can be profound and sometimes impenetrable barriers, which prevent survivors of sexual misconduct from reporting their experiences or participating in our systems of justice," Kersten said, adding "these barriers are often magnified when an act of sexual misconduct is perpetrated by a person in a position of trust, such as a police officer."
According to Kersten, the investigation into the allegations in the 10th District also resulted in a "small number of additional complaints involving migrants," including a separate allegation of officers in the 19th district engaging in sexual misconduct with a migrant.
"Similar to the allegations regarding the 10th district, COPA has been working to substantiate whether these allegations in fact occurred and to identify any potential victims," Kersten said.
When the investigation began
On July 7, COPA, the independent agency that oversees the Chicago Police Department, confirmed that it had opened a formal investigation into an allegation that several 10th District police officers engaged in sexual misconduct with at least one migrant temporarily housed at the police station.
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One day after the allegations surfaced, migrants were bused out of the 10th District police station. It is unknown where the migrants who were housed at the police station were transported.
According to CPD Deputy Director of News Affairs and Communications Tom Ahern, the department's office of internal affairs is also investigating the allegations.
The 10th District, often referred to as the "Ogden District," is located on the city's West Side, with officers in the district covering the Little Village and Lawndale neighborhoods.
"The City takes these allegations, as well as the care and well-being of all residents and new arrivals, very seriously," a statement from Mayor Brandon Johnson said earlier this month, after the allegations surfaced. "The Johnson administration will continue to center the safety of all Chicagoans, including our new neighbors. The administration is also committed to working with CPD to ensure there are protocols in place to keep migrants at police stations safe while they wait for more adequate shelter, and to hold any officers and/or staff involved accountable upon the determination of the investigation," the statement continued.
Why are migrants being bussed to Chicago?
Thousands of migrants have been transported to Chicago and other major U.S. cities from Texas since August of 2022, when Gov. Greg Abbott's administration said a bussing strategy had been implemented because of the burden placed on Texas taxpayers due to the flow of asylum-seekers and migrants into the country at the southern border.
The latest data from the city show that Chicago has received at least 10,500 migrants, with more arriving daily.
The health and safety of migrants in Chicago has been a significant focus for both the City Council and Mayor Brandon Johnson's administration, with millions of dollars in funding earmarked earlier this year to go toward the migrant crisis.
However, finding adequate housing continues to be a struggle. The Chicago Tribune reports all 22 of the city's police stations have been used as temporary shelters for migrants who have recently arrived in the city, with at least 878 migrants currently staying at police stations, the Tribune says.
More than 5,300 migrants are living at shelters across the city, and at least 69 migrants are staying at O'Hare International Airport, the Tribune reports.
At a Chicago City Council Committee on Immigrant and Refugee Rights hearing last month, the city said it has spent $101.3 million to date on the migrant crisis, with the majority of those funds spent on staffing at shelters.
