Gregory Bovino, the U.S. Border Patrol agent who became the face of President Donald Trump’s immigration crackdown, will retire at the end of the month, two Customs and Border Protection officials told NBC News.
Bovino was removed from his role as CBP commanding general in January and returned to his role as chief of the Border Patrol sector in El Centro, California. The move came after the deaths of two US citizens, Renee Good and Alex Pretti, and aggressive immigration enforcement operations in Minneapolis, Chicago and Los Angeles.
His departure coincides with the date that President Trump announced would be Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem’s last day in office. In his position as commander, he reported directly to Noem and her senior adviser, Corey Lewandowski.
Bovino was also eligible for retirement and was one year shy of CBP’s mandatory retirement age of 57.
Emails obtained by NBC News showed that Bovino became frustrated in Chicago last October when he was told to make “targeted” arrests rather than “large-scale immigration enforcement.”
CBS News was the first to report his plans to retire.
Bovino and other Customs and Border Protection agents were expelled from Minneapolis in January, where he had been overseeing Operation Metro Surge.
He appeared on Hollywood-style movie posters and in mashup videos as the White House sought to promote its crackdown on Chicago, led by Bovino. His tactics, including throwing gas canisters into crowds of protesters, sparked a lawsuit in Chicago and clashes with other administration officials.
A federal judge reprimanded him after using chemical agents in residential neighborhoods, violating a judge’s order to curb their use. The judge called Bovino back to court after finding he repeatedly lied about threats posed by immigrants and protesters. In one incident, he claimed he threw a gas canister after being hit by a stone. But he had to retract his claim after video evidence contradicted it.
This is a development history. Please check back for updates.
