SAN ANTONIO (NewsNation) — U.S. Border Patrol is alarmed by the infiltration of Venezuela’s most dangerous gang, Tren de Aragua, into cities across the United States, as law enforcement arrests members from Texas to New York.
Border Patrol Chief Jason Owens reports agents arrested a Venezuelan national affiliated with the Tren de Aragua gang at the Texas border this month.
Owens said the gang is known for violent offenses, including murder, drug trafficking and sex crimes.
In New York, Yerbin Lozada Munoz, a Venezuelan national and Tren de Aragua member, was arrested Friday by Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents. This follows his prior arrest in March for allegedly squatting in a home filled with guns and drugs.
Meanwhile in Chicago, another Tren de Aragua member, Adelvis Rodriguez-Carmona, was arrested last month for allegedly participating in a drive-by shooting. He illegally entered the U.S. in 2022 through Eagle Pass, Texas.
Rolando Vazquez, an immigration lawyer assisting Venezuelan migrants, said these gang members are everywhere and many of his clients have been threatened by them.
“The Tren de Aragua is operating in all of our cities at this point,” he said. “I take pictures of them. I send it to law enforcement, and I’m notifying all other governmental agencies when I get information on these people. But they’re operating in Houston, they’re in L.A, they’re in Chicago, New York, Miami — they’re everywhere.”
Florida Sens. Marco Rubio and Rick Scott continue to urge the Biden administration to formally designate the Tren de Aragua gang a transnational criminal organization.