(Texas Scorecard) – The U.S. Department of Homeland Security has identified over 600 illegal aliens in the U.S. who may have connections to the Venezuelan Tren de Aragua gang. Approximately 100 out of the 600 are confirmed members of the gang.
DHS has recommended that those confirmed members be placed on an FBI watchlist.
According to an NBC report, TDA currently has a confirmed presence in 15 different states in the U.S. and a possible presence in eight others.
NBC also reported that law enforcement experts have said the number released by DHS reflects that the number of members of TDA currently in the U.S. is unknown.
It is difficult for officials to determine how many members of Tren de Aragua are possibly in the country because the Venezuelan government, unlike other countries, will not release criminal history information to the U.S.
Over 100 members of the gang have been arrested in the United States since October 2022.
Currently, Venezuela is not accepting back any of its citizens who have illegally crossed into the U.S. through the southern border.
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement is required to release Venezuelan illegal aliens into the country due to a federal court ruling that barred them from detaining illegal aliens indefinitely.
The Tren de Aragua gang originated in the Tocorón prison in Aragua, Venezuela. Héctor Rustherford Guerrero Flores, also known as Niño Guerrero, is the leader of Tren de Aragua. He based his headquarters out of the Tocorón prison up until September 2023, at which time he escaped. His current whereabouts are unknown.
According to Fox News, Tren de Aragua is well known for its brutality throughout South America, having built an international criminal empire. Members of the gang have committed crimes such as drug trafficking, human trafficking, murder, rape, extortion, and kidnapping.
The Heritage Foundation reported that there has been a 25 percent drop from 2021-2022 in violent deaths in Venezuela.
“It is not implausible to postulate a link to Venezuela’s export of thousands of young criminals, many to the U.S.,” explained The Heritage Foundation in a press release earlier this month.
