Unmasking the Paramilitary Agents Behind Trump's Violent Immigration Crackdown

A WIRED analysis of Department of Homeland Security records has identified dozens of specialized federal agents who used force against US civilians during what is believed to be the largest domestic deployment of paramilitary Border Patrol units in American history.

The investigation focused on BORTAC (Border Patrol Tactical Unit) and BORSTAR (Border Patrol Search, Trauma and Rescue) — elite units historically reserved for desert rescues, armed drug cartel conflicts, and high-risk warrants. Under the Trump administration, these heavily armed units have been deployed into the streets of major US cities for routine immigration enforcement, marking a fundamental shift in the militarization of domestic law enforcement.

The report details a September 30 raid on Chicago's South Shore Apartments, where hundreds of federal agents in body armor rappelled from Black Hawk helicopters while others breached doors with battering rams. Agents used suppressor-equipped M4 rifles and attack dogs against civilians, including the documented case of Tolulope Akinsulie, a Nigerian immigrant with no criminal history, who was repeatedly bitten by a Belgian Malinois named Yoda without warning.

The raid was based on intelligence claiming Tren de Aragua gang members occupied the building with stockpiled weapons — intelligence that was never substantiated and which Illinois later investigated as potentially fabricated by the property owner.

WIRED identified specific agents including team leader Corey Myers (a Marine veteran), Padraic Daniel Berlin (operator of the attack dog Yoda), David Dubar Jr., and Paul Delgado Jr. The investigation relied on DHS documents and body camera footage released through records requests.

The deployment represents what critics describe as an unprecedented use of offensive military-grade force for street-level immigration operations in American cities, a practice with no precedent in US law enforcement history.