Federal authorities said Monday they have arrested a former Illinois teacher who was living in the U.S. unlawfully and is accused of involvement in a 2024 mass shooting tied to Tren de Aragua that left three people dead at a Chicago house party.
Giovanna Mercedes Moreno Occhipinti, 32, a Venezuelan national who also holds Italian citizenship, was detained by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents on May 13, according to the Department of Homeland Security.
DHS said Occhipinti entered the United States in October 2021 through the Visa Waiver Program and was required to depart by Jan. 2, 2022. Officials said she remained in the country after her authorization expired.
Authorities allege that on Dec. 2, 2024, Occhipinti drove two suspected gunmen — Ricardo Granadillo Padilla and Edward Martinez Cermeno — to the location where the shooting occurred. In addition to the three people killed, five others were wounded, officials said.
“Although Chicago police arrested this illegal alien shortly after the shooting, sanctuary politicians released her from jail without notifying ICE,” DHS Acting Assistant Secretary Lauren Bis said in a statement. “Under President Trump and Secretary Mullin, DHS is doing the job that sanctuary politicians in Illinois refuse to do: putting the American people first and removing these dangerous criminals from our communities.”
Martinez Cermeno was released from ICE custody in January 2025 after a federal judge found that prosecutors had not met the legal standard required to keep him detained while awaiting trial.
DHS said investigators recovered multiple weapons from Occhipinti’s vehicle in the immediate aftermath of the shooting. Authorities also believe she helped Granadillo Padilla and Martinez Cermeno avoid law enforcement following the attack.
Chicago police arrested Occhipinti on Dec. 5, 2024, on charges including unlawful use of a weapon and other weapons-related offenses. DHS said she was later released without ICE being notified, citing Chicago’s sanctuary policies that limit cooperation with federal immigration enforcement.
The Cook County State’s Attorney’s office decided not to prosecute the suspects, DHS said, and Granadillo Padilla and Martinez Cermeno were eventually deported.
“Giovanna Mercedes Moreno Occhipinti’s actions were calculated and deliberate, leading to the loss of three lives,” said HSI Chicago Special Agent in Charge Matthew Scarpino. “I’m proud of our agents for pursuing this case to the end, ensuring that everyone who helped facilitate this mass homicide is brought to justice.”
Fox News was told by DHS that Occhipinti was a teacher at an unspecified school in the Chicago suburb of Elgin. Illinois officials have refused to cooperate with federal authorities and will not tell DHS the name of the school, Fox News has learned.
Occhipinti is being held at the Grayson County Detention Center in Leitchfield, Kentucky.
