The United States has been identified by hundreds of immigrants who may be connected to Tren de Aragua, an international crime syndicate originating from Venezuela, according to a report from the Department of Homeland Security ( DHS). This discovery, reported by NBC News, features growing concerns over the impact of organized offense within U. S. edges.
According to The Daily Caller News Foundation, DHS leaders believe that more than 600 international immigrants who reside in the United States are connected to Tren de Aragua. Of this team, around 100 people are confirmed crew members, while others may be testimony, sufferers, or prospective users of the gang. Tren de Aragua, which started as a prison gang in Venezuela’s Aragua state in 2013, has expanded tremendously, boasting thousands of members across several countries and a validated presence in 15 U. S. states, with possible ties to eight further states.
Immigration and Customs Enforcement ( ICE ) has apprehended over 100 individuals suspected of having connections to Tren de Aragua since October 2022. This includes 75 apprehended for different emigration violations, with more than 20 people referred for federal prosecutors. According to a DHS director,” All persons confirmed or suspected to become crew members are referred for criminal prosecution or detained and placed into extended removal” is the organization’s commitment to tackling gang activity.
Re-screening specific individuals who have recently been encountered by DHS is one of the ongoing businesses, with the goal of identifying potential crew members or victims. Due to disturbed U.S. Venezuelan relations, which prevent migrants from Venezuela from having access to their unlawful histories, this process is complicated.
Law enforcement authorities are concerned about the reliability of the images released by DHS, which suggests that the actual amount of crew members may be much higher. Frank Figliuzzi, a former FBI associate director for intelligence, remarked,” The range is almost dangerously low … It should be higher”. He noted that while Tren de Aragua’s actions in the U. S. are concerning, the group has yet to demonstrate a high level of business and style.
The uncountable number of migrant encounters along the U.S. Mexico borders, with about 2.1 million contacts reported in fiscal year 2024 alone, serve as the backdrop to this problem. Under the Biden-Harris administration, the total figure of migrant encounters at the southern border has reached around 8.5 million, not including an additional half a million migrants brought into the country through the administration’s CHNV program.
In addition to the hundreds of thousands of Venezuelan nationals who have been confirmed as gang members, there are also rising numbers of immigrants. Tren de Aragua has been implicated in various high-profile criminal activities, including a notorious gang takeover of several apartments in Aurora, Colorado, and the shooting of two New York Police Department officers.
