The operation, dubbed "Operation New Dawn," involved 11 federal agencies working together in advance of the July 4 holiday, according to officials.
"One hundred seventy nine defendants, over 140 cases, 305 fugitives, 24 children returned home," Andrew Boutros said during his first official Chicago news conference.
Boutros described "Operation New Dawn" as a two-month initiative focused on violent crime. Federal officials emphasized coordination among agencies as a key component of the effort.
Eleven federal agencies came together over 60 days in an effort to disrupt violence in the Chicago and Rockford areas, he said.
"This spring and summer initiative had that full intention: Remove the violent offenders off our streets that have been operating the way they have for years, emboldened by many years of not being held accountable," said Robert Cekada, director of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms.
Boutros said some of the suspects are accused in robberies, kidnapping, kidnapping resulting in death, firearms trafficking, firearm offenses, drug trafficking, immigration violations, child exploitation and various other federal violent crimes.
Boutros took particular aim at local Cook County judges Thursday.
US Attorney in IL says nearly 200 charged in anti-violence initiative
"We've got a problem with the Cook County judges ... because what you see are people who are violent offenders, repeat violent offenders that the Cook County judges decide to release on pretrial condition," Boutros opined from the podium at an announcement about a joint operation netting 500 arrests ahead of the Fourth of July. He was touting his efforts to charge defendants federally, and detain them, including Lawrence Reed for allegedly setting a woman on fire on the Blue Line last November, according to court documents.
Boutros released few specifics about the cases and was asked by ABC7 Chicago whether they would normally be tried at the county level.
"The terrorism case that I charged on mass transit, that's an individual who had over 100 arrests and was also on electronic monitoring. Why was he out? How many cases have we taken time and time again where, frankly, the Cook County judges failed the people of the Northern District of Illinois and failed to detain them?" Boutros said.
Cook County Chief Judge Charlie Beach would not comment on the accusations Friday, but addressed the Reed case with the I-Team in his first on-camera interview in December last year.
"A judge is put in a very unique spot, right, they have to look at the accused and recognize that they're presumed innocent, recognize that they have due process rights, constitutional rights. You need to balance that against public safety, the rights of the victim in that case," said Beach in December. "But in the end, every judge has to come to that conclusion on their own."
This was Boutros' first public appearance as misconduct allegations surrounding his office and the "Broadview Six" case widen. The case involving progressive politicians was dropped after claims of wrongdoing by prosecutors. Boutros refused to answer questions from the I-Team about the case that former assistant U.S. attorneys say has created a credibility crisis for the office.
"There will be a time where I'm going to address all that stuff. We have a court filing that we'll be speaking through in a lot more detail, but I will say again there has been a lot of reckless reporting," Boutros said.
Boutros also denied rumors that he was involved in the departure of the FBI's Special Agent in Charge Doug DePodesta. The head of the Chicago Field Office announced his retirement Wednesday. Boutros said the news came as a complete surprise.
There have been three cases dropped in the past few weeks over prosecutorial misconduct claims against the U.S. Attorney's Office. The office is now facing the possibility of at least two separate sanction hearings.
Late Thursday, the I-Team learned Boutros has been ordered to appear in-person to answer questions over potential violations of a judicial order in another case.