Local Voices
Community Rallies Behind Tamale Vendor Detained By Immigration Agents In Back Of The Yards
His daughter-in-law, Alexy Marin, said the agents came out of nowhere.
December 18, 2025
As federal agents, including Border Patrol Commander Greg Bovino, continued immigration enforcement operations in the Chicago area on Wednesday, the Back of the Yards community was rallying to support the family of a 68-year-old tamale vendor who was detained on Tuesday.
Find out what's happening in South Sidefor free with the latest updates from Patch.
Federico Diaz Acevedo's family said he's lived in Chicago for more than two decades, but fears that have enveloped them and their community have become a reality.
Surveillance video shows Acevedo setting up his cart at 47th and Hermitage in the Back of the Yards neighborhood to sell tamales on Tuesday. Minutes later, two federal agents arrived, approached Acevedo – known to many as "Don Federico" – detained him, and drove away, leaving his cart behind.
