The Trump administration labeled one of them the “worst of the worst.”

Another was arrested on the way to work at a South Side cheesesteak joint. A third was under investigation for child exploitation crimes. And when a fourth appeared in federal court, a judge was told, “Chicago is all he knows.”

They’re among a handful of defendants arrested for illegally re-entering the United States and brought to the Dirksen Federal Courthouse since the start of President Donald Trump’s second term.

While they represent a small sliver of prosecutions at the downtown building — better known for cases involving public corruption, violent street gangs and terrorism — there has been a noticeable uptick in these immigration-related cases since January.

They open a rare window into an area of the crimin

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