The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has identified hundreds of migrants in the United States who may be connected to an international crime syndicate originating from Venezuela, according to NBC News.
DHS officials suspect more than 600 foreign nationals living in the U.S. have ties to Tren de Aragua, according to data obtained by NBC News. Around 100 of the 600 migrants that DHS has identified as “subjects of interest” are confirmed members of the international gang, while others could be witnesses, victims or are members themselves.
Tren de Aragua began as a prison gang in 2013 in the Venezuelan state of Aragua, and has since grown to thousands of members across several countries. Tren de Aragua has a confirmed presence in 15 states across the country, and possibly a presence in eight other states, according to the data obtained by NBC News.
Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents have apprehended over 100 individuals suspected of being tied to Tren De Aragua in connection with criminal activity since October 2022, according to NBC News. Seventy-five have been apprehended for various immigration violations, and over 20 of them have been referred for federal prosecution.
“As a part of our work to counter [Tren de Aragua] TdA, DHS has an ongoing operation to crack down on gang members through re-screening certain individuals previously encountered, in addition to the rigorous screening and vetting at the border,” a DHS spokesperson stated to the Daily Caller News Foundation when reached for comment about the report. “All individuals confirmed or suspected to be gang members are referred for criminal prosecution or detained and placed into Expedited Removal.”
“Individuals identified as of interest in the re-screening include those already in custody, potential victims or witnesses who are not themselves suspected of being TdA members, and others who may not have any involvement in TdA at all,” the statement continued. “DHS continues to coordinate closely with international, federal, state and local law enforcement partners to crack down on TdA and all other gangs.”
Determining which Venezuelan migrants reaching the U.S. border are connected to Tren de Aragua can be difficult for federal immigration authorities, given bilateral relations with the struggling South American country are incredibly strained and President Nicolas Maduro’s government does not share criminal histories of migrants with its U.S. counterparts.
Law enforcement experts say that, due to this lack of intelligence about Tren de Aragua, the 600 figure is not reflective of the gang’s real presence in the country.
“The number is almost disturbingly low,” Frank Figliuzzi, a former FBI assistant director for counterintelligence stated to NBC News. “It should be higher.”
“Most gang experts would say that TDA is not yet exhibiting signs of sophistication and advanced organization within the United States,” Figliuzzi continued.
Increasing reports of Tren de Aragua crime have followed an unprecedented border crisis under the Biden-Harris administration.
There were roughly 2.1 million migrant encounters along the U.S-Mexico border in fiscal year 2024, according to the latest data revealed by Customs and Border Protection (CBP). This final number puts the total figure of migrant encounters at the southern border during the Biden-Harris administration at roughly 8.5 million — and does not include the roughly half a million migrants flown into the country via the White House’s CHNV program.
The mass immigration has included hundreds of thousands of Venezuelan nationals, and some of them have been confirmed members of the gang.
Tren de Aragua members have notoriously been behind a gang takeover of several apartments in Aurora, Colorado, the shooting of two New York Police Department officers and have been suspected of being involved in a slate of high profile crimes across the country.
ICE did not immediately respond to a request for comment from the DCNF.
(Featured Image Media Credit: Screen Capture/PBS NewsHour)
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