A new task force in South Texas is cracking down on the violent Venezuelan cartel Tren de Aragua.
The FBI and ICE-Homeland Security Investigations in San Antonio announced the launch of the new Homeland Security Task Force-South Texas. The group will target “transnational criminal organizations,” including Tren de Aragua, which authorities busted on November 16, netting 51 confirmed cartel members.
“The Homeland Security Task Force was established as a powerful tool in the fight against transnational organized crime,” said FBI San Antonio Acting Special Agent in Charge Alex Doran in a press release. “We are dedicated to dismantling the cartels and criminal networks responsible for violent crime, human trafficking, and drug smuggling with the ultimate goal of preserving the safety and security of the communities we serve.”
The task force will target “transnational criminal organizations,” both within the country and outside its borders, according to the release. It will lead missions against “sophisticated cartels, foreign terrorist organizations, and transnational gangs” who commit murder, kidnapping, human trafficking, extortion, drug smuggling, and money laundering.
Member agencies include federal, state, and local partners, including the FBI, DEA, U.S. Marshals, U.S. Coast Guard, ATF, CBP, Border Patrol, ICE-HSI and ERO, IRS, and the U.S. Attorney’s Offices for the Southern and Western Districts of Texas. Other members include the Texas Department of Public Safety and the South Texas High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area.
This task force was formed as a regional branch of the national Homeland Security Task Force. This is pursuant to President Donald Trump’s executive order “Protecting The American People Against Invasion,” which he signed on his first day back in office.
Targeting Tren de Aragua
Tren de Aragua is a brutal Venezuelan cartel that specializes in murder, kidnapping, rape, and sex trafficking, according to former Texas DPS Director Steven McCraw. The gang sparked public concern this summer for infiltrating the Denver suburb of Aurora, Colorado, per the New York Post.
Gov. Greg Abbott labeled Tren de Aragua a foreign terrorist organization in September 2024, as The Dallas Express reported at the time. Trump followed Abbott’s lead in January, designating the cartel a foreign terrorist organization at the federal level. In March, he invoked the Alien Enemies Act against the group.
ICE raided an illicit after-hours nightclub in San Antonio on November 16, with help from agencies like Texas DPS, according to a press release from the Department of Homeland Security. Law enforcement arrested 51 confirmed Tren de Aragua members and 143 potential illegal aliens, mostly Venezuelans. Of the suspects, 25 had criminal records in the U.S., including 13 felonies and 12 misdemeanors. The nightclub was near 5939 San Pedro Ave., near North Central San Antonio.
“Law enforcement officers also seized weapons, drugs, and $35,000 during this operation targeting an underground nightclub,” said Assistant DHS Secretary Tricia McLaughlin at the time. “Under President Trump and Secretary Noem, DHS is dismantling criminal gangs and stopping dangerous drugs from pouring into American neighborhoods.”
The month before, officials filed a superseding indictment on October 28 for money laundering against a father and son for providing material support to a Mexican cartel, which was designated a foreign terrorist organization, according to an FBI press release. The federal government sought a criminal forfeiture of 77,000 barrels of crude oil, $2.5 million, and a $300 million judgment.
Law enforcement also intercepted 534 guns, 525 magazines, and 31,482 rounds of ammunition in Laredo on October 23, before they were trafficked to Mexico, according to the release.
Infiltrating San Antonio
Earlier that month, police in San Antonio verified the empty Palatia Apartments had been taken over by Tren de Aragua, as The Dallas Express reported at the time. For the past year, the apartment’s address had received around 1,500 calls for service – including 140 gunfire reports, 14 burglaries, and 12 assault cases.
“We had information that members of the transnational gang, Tren de Aragua, were in control of the area and committing various crimes,” said San Antonio Police Chief William McManus at the time.
The morning of October 4, a task force comprising the FBI, DHS, Border Patrol, Texas DPS, the Texas Anti-Gang Unit, and the San Antonio Police Department cleared more than 300 units at the complex. They arrested more than 20 suspects, including four members of Tren de Aragua.
“Even though we finished here at the complex, we are not done,” McManus said at that point.
The cartel had reportedly captured three more San Antonio apartment complexes as of October 16, as The Dallas Express reported. The specific buildings were not disclosed at the time, due to an ongoing investigation.
When the new task force launched, HSI-San Antonio Acting Special Agent in Charge Mark Lippa pledged to protect Americans from the growing cartel threat.
“The Homeland Security Task Force plays a critical role in safeguarding the American people and combating transnational criminal organizations,” Lippa said in a release. “HSI and its law enforcement partners will focus on dismantling drug cartels and terrorist organizations to protect communities nationwide.”
