Federal agents executed search warrants at multiple locations tied to Illinois Sen. Martin Sandoval Tuesday.
Agents were seen at his district office in the 5800 block of West 35th Street in suburban Cicero, while a representative for BlueRoomStream, an online streaming service for events at the Illinois State Capitol, reported that there were at least six agents at Sandoval's Springfield office.
"FBI personnel are engaged in an authorized law enforcement activity at the Illinois State Capitol," a spokesman for the Federal Bureau of Investigation's Chicago office said in a statement, declining to comment further.
Sandoval has been in office since 2003 and is a member of the Senate Democratic Caucus leadership, as well as chair of the Senate Transportation Committee. It was not immediately clear what the agents sought at his offices, and no criminal charges have been filed against Sandoval, who did not immediately respond to request for comment.
Sandoval drew outrage and condemnation last month after photos surfaced from his political fundraiser, showing an attendee pretending to shoot someone wearing a mask of President Donald Trump.
"I reject any suggestion of violence towards the president or anyone else," Sandoval said in a statement at the time, adding that he had "absolutely no knowledge that this regrettable exchange... took place."
A spokesman for the Chicago office of the U.S. Secret Service said at the time that the agency was "aware of the fundraiser" but declined to comment as to whether there was an ongoing investigation into the photos.
"The Secret Service investigates all threats to the President and takes them seriously," the USSS spokesman said. It was not immediately clear if the searches Tuesday were in relation to the photos taken at the fundraiser.
Local
The raids at Sandoval's offices were the latest in a long string of FBI searches at various locations tied to state and local political figures.
The home of Kevin Quinn, a former top aide to Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan and the brother of 13th Ward Ald. Marty Quinn, was raided in May, according to multiple sources. Madigan's statehouse seat is one of two within the boundaries of Sandoval's Senate district.
Chicago Ald. Ed Burke was indicted in May on multiple charges of corruption, with authorities alleging he had used his position to steer business to his private law firm specializing in property tax appeals.
The indictment of Burke came after former Ald. Danny Solis, who sources said was himself the subject of a federal criminal investigation in 2014, secretly recorded a number of conversations with Burke using an electronic listening device.
And in June, federal agents also executed a search warrant at the ward office of Ald. Carrie Austin, reportedly related to the zoning of the area surrounding her Far South Side home.
