The federal government has quietly reinstated the work authorization of Radule Bojovic, the former Hanover Park police officer arrested last fall for allegedly overstaying a tourist visa.
The reinstatement comes after U.S. District Judge Jorge Alonso last month ordered that the government was temporarily barred from revoking the Montenegro native’s employment authorization. The government revoked Bojovic’s work permit in January. He was subsequently let go from the Hanover Park Police Department.
Alonso had set a status hearing for the case on Tuesday, when his 14-day temporary restraining order was set to expire.
However, in a joint status report filed last Friday, the government stated it had reinstated Bojovic’s work permit authorization through 2030. The report also said that parties have been in communication “regarding next steps to resolve this matter without contested litigation.”
Despite Bojovic regaining work authorization, his employment status with Hanover Park had remained unchanged as of Thursday afternoon, a village spokesperson confirmed to the Tribune. Bojovic is not currently employed with the village, the spokesperson said, denying further comment. Bojovic’s attorney’s office did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
U.S. Customs and Immigration Enforcement officers arrested Bojovic in October amid the Trump administration’s 64-day local mass deportation campaign. In November, as Operation Midway Blitz wound down and President Donald Trump directed his crackdown elsewhere, Bojovic was released from ICE custody on bond.
Meanwhile, Bojovic returned to full duty, with village officials maintaining he retained a valid permit to work in the country while he awaited the outcome of his immigration proceedings.
Shortly after, Bojovic received a “notice of intent to revoke” his work permit from U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, court filings show.
USCIS, in its notice, told Bojovic he wasn’t eligible for a work permit because the immigration policy that had previously granted him authorization no longer applied to him.
After the parties’ status report last week, Alonso rescheduled Tuesday’s hearing to later this month.
