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Here’s How A Venezuelan Gang Was Able To Infiltrate The US And Wreak Havoc In Major Cities
Daily Caller News Foundation, ^ | September 22, 2024 | Wallace White

Posted on 09/23/2024 5:59:08 AM PDT by george76

A notorious Venezuelan gang is extending its tentacles into the U.S. on the back of the Biden-Harris administration’s border crisis, and experts say that immigration authorities have no way of identifying the criminal group’s members before they hit American soil.

The gang, known as Tren de Aragua, has made headlines in recent weeks with its criminal activities in multiple states, according to multiple reports. Yet, border authorities have virtually zero tools to detect Venezuelan migrants’ affiliations with the gang, as the U.S.’ diplomatic relationship with the beleaguered country is effectively on ice, experts told the Daily Caller News Foundation.

“We have next to no vetting for the Venezuelans who are entering the country, because we have no relationship with the government of Venezuela and that’s true of other migrant nationalities,” Jessica Vaughan, director of policy studies at the Center for Immigration Studies, told the DCNF. “We have no way of knowing whether they were in prison in Venezuela. We have no idea if they’ve been living in a third-world country for years before they tried to come to the United States. We’re essentially letting them in on their word.”

A hotel in El Paso, Texas, was shut down on Sept. 9 following an investigation into Tren de Aragua and other gangs’ use of the complex where alleged incidents of drug use and prostitution occurred, according to the El Paso Times. Additionally, the Dallas Police Department confirmed to the DCNF that there is an ongoing investigation into the gang’s activities in the area.

“We’re really not seeing Tren de Aragua operate in McAllen or Del Rio, or anything else like that,” Ammon Blair, former Customs and Border Patrol (CBP) agent and senior fellow at the Texas Public Policy Foundation, told the DCNF. “But they are operating in El Paso, because it’s a major city … there’s a large diaspora of Venezuelans there.”

In Aurora, Colorado, 10 Tren de Aragua members were identified by police on Sept. 11 as part of an investigation into a string of alleged criminal incidents at apartment complexes in the city, according to FOX 31. The alleged crimes include felony menacing, assault, motor vehicle theft and numerous shootings.

The property management company overseeing the complexes said the gang had effectively “taken over” the buildings, according to The Denver Post.

Tren de Aragua’s nefarious presence has even managed to draw the gaze of the Biden Treasury Department, which declared the gang a transnational criminal organization and announced sanctions in July, citing its involvement in human trafficking, drug trafficking and money laundering. Tren de Aragua started as a prison gang in the Venezuelan state of Aragua in 2013, taking over the Torocon prison and making it their base of operations, growing to around 5,000 members in 2023, according to Insight Crime.

Unlike other gangs, Tren de Aragua doesn’t have a defined set of tattoos that would make it easy for law enforcement to identify members, according to the El Paso Times. The gang’s main target is Venezuelan migrants, who they extort, smuggle and sex traffic to other countries, including the U.S., according to Insight Crime.

In order for CBP to get criminal records from Venezuelans, they would have to use Interpol data, as the U.S. doesn’t have a memorandum of agreement with Venezuela to exchange criminal records, Blair told the DCNF. Moreover, CBP often has to release the detainee before they can obtain criminal records from Interpol.

“Once Biden came into office and offered catch and release policies, temporary protected status, you name it, the Venezuelans started fleeing to the U.S. from all the other countries as well,” Blair told the DCNF. “So when we receive a lot of Venezuelans at the border, we’ll see that many Venezuelans have multiple identification cards from multiple countries, and so it’s very difficult to ascertain who they are.”

From fiscal year 2021 to 2023, CBP saw a 421% increase in Venezuelans encountered at the southern border, according to CBP data.

CBP told the DCNF that the agency has enhanced measures to screen for gangs, and any person deemed a threat is referred for prosecution or investigation as required. It also cited the Biden administration’s initiatives to curtail illegal immigration from the southern border, saying that the majority of southern border encounters in the last three fiscal years have resulted in a removal, return or expulsion.

“They’re now going to be in every diaspora of Venezuelans or Venezuelan communities inside the United States,” Blair added. “And now that we’ve imported over half a million Venezuelans since Biden’s been in office, they’re going to be in every one of those communities.”

Republican Texas Gov. Greg Abbott announced Monday he would designate Tren de Aragua a terrorist organization and bring the “full weight of the government” on the gang, according to The Texas Tribune. The gang has been active in the state since 2021, and more than 3,000 illegal immigrants from Venezuela have been arrested since then, according to Abbott.

“When it comes to migration from South America and Venezuela, I think that’s somewhere where they have a comparative advantage that they’ve taken advantage of,” Zack Smith, senior legal fellow at the Heritage Foundation told the DCNF. “And then I think also, in that same way, drug trafficking seems to be something that they’re able to tap into as well.”

In 2023, the Department of Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) partnered with Peru to create a “Transnational Crime Investigation Unit” to combat Tren de Aragua, according to Dialogo Americas. Peru is one of the many South American countries involved in the gang’s network for trafficking people and drugs.

“We’re not heavily scrutinizing anyone coming in,” Blair told the DCNF. “We’re not detaining them. We’re using alternatives to detention, so no one’s really being vetted.”

A U.S. Department of State spokesperson told the DCNF that the agency is working to contain the threat from the gang nationwide, citing efforts from the Biden administration to curtail illegal border crossings. The agency also said they partner with the Department of Homeland Security and the Department of Justice to disrupt the gang’s activity abroad and have improved their vetting tools.


TOPICS: Crime/Corruption; Government; Mexico; News/Current Events; Politics/Elections; US: Texas; War; War on Terror
KEYWORDS: 2013; 2021; 2023; 202409; 20240909; 20240911; alien; aliens; aragua; araguatrain; aurora; colorado; crime; criminalaliens; dallas; drugtrafficking; dtg; elpaso; elpasocell; extortion; gang; heritagefoundation; humantrafficking; illegal; illegalalien; illegalaliens; illegals; moneylaundering; newcomers; peru; prostitution; sextrafficking; tciu; tda; terrorism; terrorists; thearaguatrain; trendearagua; venezuela; venezuelan; venezuelangang; venezuelans
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1 posted on 09/23/2024 5:59:08 AM PDT by george76
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To: george76

The tattoos are invisible until the gang members are safely ensconced in American cities.


2 posted on 09/23/2024 6:03:05 AM PDT by ThanhPhero
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To: george76
Here’s How A Venezuelan Gang Was Able To Infiltrate The US And Wreak Havoc In Major Cities

These are the guys Biden and Harris are flying in, putting up in 5 star hotels, and giving debit cards.

3 posted on 09/23/2024 6:08:17 AM PDT by The Sons of Liberty (President Trump saved by DIVINE INTERVENTION. GOD CONTINUES TO BLESS AMERICA!!!)
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To: george76

I have a guess.... was it because we let them in and gave them all phones and $30k WAM?


4 posted on 09/23/2024 6:17:01 AM PDT by Sarcazmo (I live by the Golden Rule. As applied by others; I'm not selfish.)
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To: george76

Is “infiltrate” a synonym for “just walk right in”?


5 posted on 09/23/2024 6:18:37 AM PDT by Flag_This (They're lying.)
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To: george76

Already they’ve got a PR department! That’s fast growth.


6 posted on 09/23/2024 6:23:00 AM PDT by xoxox
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To: george76

The Demonicrats, from Traitorbarry on down to Demonicrat judges, governors, mayors, and DAs are responsible.


7 posted on 09/23/2024 6:23:28 AM PDT by Carl Vehse
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To: george76
Today: Major cities

Tomorrow: Suburbs, towns, and the countryside

8 posted on 09/23/2024 6:24:08 AM PDT by Savage Beast (Fight! Fight! Fight! God Bless America!--President Donald Trump, Butler, Pennsylvania, July 13, 2024)
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To: george76

Start sending them all to Marthas Vineyard and Delaware


9 posted on 09/23/2024 6:26:15 AM PDT by eyeamok
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To: george76

Mayorkas is using “parole” - a side door to US immigration policy to import as many formerly inadmissible “refugees” from the 3rd world as possible:

“The DHS website says “Parole allows an individual, who may be inadmissible or otherwise ineligible for admission into the United States, to be paroled into the United States for a temporary period.”

Before Mayorkas, the side door was rarely opened to foreigners, mostly because federal law narrowly limits parole entry to a few people in emergency emergencies, a ship crewman with a heart attack, or a tourist facing a sudden war in their home country.

Mayorkas claims the system works b/c it has the Haitian parole process worked because it reduced criminal activity at the U.S. border.”

Tell that to the people of Springfield, OH, how well your “parole” system is working. Harris will grant them all citizenship.


10 posted on 09/23/2024 6:33:43 AM PDT by Bon of Babble (You Say You Want a Revolution?)
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To: eyeamok

Don’t forget Cape Cod and Nantucket. Tons of anti-American, self-centered, hate-filled Lilly-Leftists there as well.


11 posted on 09/23/2024 6:34:09 AM PDT by Justa (Our constitution was made only for a moral and religious people....)
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To: george76

The reason Leftists HATE America is because the American Constitution grants The People liberty and rights which the government must abide by and respect.

They are elitists. They HATE the People and therefore must destroy the liberties which belong to the People.


12 posted on 09/23/2024 6:37:31 AM PDT by Justa (Our constitution was made only for a moral and religious people....)
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To: GOPJ; poconopundit; Jane Long; Diana in Wisconsin; Grampa Dave; Godzilla; Vaduz; null and void; ...

Veneuzela’s Tren de Aragua’s nefarious presence has even
managed to draw the gaze of the (yikes) Biden Treasury Dept.

They declared the gang a “transnational criminal organization” and announced sanctions in July, citing its involvement in human trafficking, drug trafficking and money laundering.

Tren de Aragua started as a prison gang in the Venezuelan state of Aragua in 2013, taking over the Torocon prison and making it their base of operations, growing to around 5,000 members in 2023, according to Insight Crime.


13 posted on 09/23/2024 6:38:36 AM PDT by Liz (Faith is believing what you cannot see; its reward is to see what you believe. St Augustine)
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To: george76

This is treason on the part of Democrats.


14 posted on 09/23/2024 6:41:01 AM PDT by MeneMeneTekelUpharsin (Freedom is the freedom to discipline yourself so others don't have to do it for you.)
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To: Bon of Babble

Tell that to the people of Springfield, OH, how well your “parole” system is working. Harris will grant them all citizenship.

~~~

I’m not saying that the Haitians in Springfield are in a gang nor that they are bad people, but that’s how it will start out. People like Guvnah DeWine telling everyone there is nothing to see here, and then one day after they have firm control of the territory, the bad part will start coming out.


15 posted on 09/23/2024 6:49:40 AM PDT by z3n (Kakistocracy)
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To: george76
'we’ve 'imported' over half a million Venezuelans since Biden’s been in office'....

that does not include the illegal entries.

Some gang identifiers


16 posted on 09/23/2024 6:55:32 AM PDT by caww (O death, when you seized my Lord, you lost your grip on me......)
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To: caww
Members of the Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua identified by Aurora Police Department in Colorado on Wednesday, September 11, 2024.

The town has been in the national spotlight after reports it was "overrun" by Venezuelans...Trump brought up Aurora as an example of the an American community struggling to manage an influx of migrants.


17 posted on 09/23/2024 6:59:26 AM PDT by caww (O death, when you seized my Lord, you lost your grip on me......)
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To: george76

HOW?

Imported and financed by our treasonous government.


18 posted on 09/23/2024 7:07:55 AM PDT by metmom (He who testifies to these things says, “Surely I am coming soon.” Amen. Come, Lord Jesus”)
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To: george76

I read where there were about 100,000 applications - 3000 from the same source(s). Most of the information contained in them are lies and the same (P.O. Boxes, non existent or untraceable).

They basically are inundating the application process and depending on the exhaustion of the officials in the approval process. It’s like they don’t know what a computer or data base is.


19 posted on 09/23/2024 7:11:52 AM PDT by Gaffer
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To: george76; Liz; metmom
Awareness Ping - "Tren de Aragua" has been identified as a Transnational Crime Organization, and its presence in Colorado, and El Paso Texas is being felt by police authorities.
"From fiscal year 2021 to 2023, CBP saw a 421% increase in Venezuelans encountered at the southern border, according to CBP data." (Emphasis Mine)
Be vigilant, and know your community, and be aware

(From the article) :.."“We have next to no vetting for the Venezuelans who are entering the country, because we have no relationship with the government of Venezuela
and that’s true of other migrant nationalities,” Jessica Vaughan, director of policy studies at the Center for Immigration Studies, told the DCNF.
“We have no way of knowing whether they were in prison in Venezuela.
We have no idea if they’ve been living in a third-world country for years before they tried to come to the United States.
We’re essentially letting them in on their word.”

"A hotel in El Paso, Texas, was shut down on Sept. 9 following an investigation into Tren de Aragua and other gangs’ use of the complex
where alleged incidents of drug use and prostitution occurred, according to the El Paso Times.
Additionally, the Dallas Police Department confirmed to the DCNF that there is an ongoing investigation into the gang’s activities in the area."

“We’re really not seeing Tren de Aragua operate in McAllen or Del Rio, or anything else like that,” Ammon Blair,
former Customs and Border Patrol (CBP) agent and senior fellow at the Texas Public Policy Foundation, told the DCNF.
“But they are operating in El Paso, because it’s a major city … there’s a large diaspora of Venezuelans there.”

"In Aurora, Colorado, 10 Tren de Aragua members were identified by police on Sept. 11 as part of an investigation into a string of alleged criminal incidents at apartment complexes in the city, according to FOX 31.
The alleged crimes include felony menacing, assault, motor vehicle theft and numerous shootings."

"The property management company overseeing the complexes said the gang had effectively “taken over” the buildings, according to The Denver Post."

"Tren de Aragua’s nefarious presence has even managed to draw the gaze of the Biden Treasury Department, which declared the gang a transnational criminal organization
and announced sanctions in July, citing its involvement in human trafficking, drug trafficking and money laundering.
Tren de Aragua started as a prison gang in the Venezuelan state of Aragua in 2013, taking over the Torocon prison
and making it their base of operations, growing to around 5,000 members in 2023, according to Insight Crime."

"Unlike other gangs, Tren de Aragua doesn’t have a defined set of tattoos that would make it easy for law enforcement to identify members,
according to the El Paso Times.
The gang’s main target is Venezuelan migrants, who they extort, smuggle and sex traffic to other countries, including the U.S., according to Insight Crime."

"In order for CBP to get criminal records from Venezuelans, they would have to use Interpol data, as the U.S. doesn’t have a memorandum of agreement with Venezuela
to exchange criminal records, Blair told the DCNF. Moreover, CBP often has to release the detainee before they can obtain criminal records from Interpol."

“Once Biden came into office and offered catch and release policies, temporary protected status, you name it, the Venezuelans started fleeing to the U.S.
from all the other countries as well,” Blair told the DCNF.
“So when we receive a lot of Venezuelans at the border, we’ll see that many Venezuelans have multiple identification cards
from multiple countries, and so it’s very difficult to ascertain who they are.”

"CBP told the DCNF that the agency has enhanced measures to screen for gangs, and any person deemed a threat is referred for prosecution or investigation as required.
It also cited the Biden administration’s initiatives to curtail illegal immigration from the southern border, saying that the majority of southern border encounters
in the last three fiscal years have resulted in a removal, return or expulsion."

“They’re now going to be in every diaspora of Venezuelans or Venezuelan communities inside the United States,” Blair added.
“And now that we’ve imported over half a million Venezuelans since Biden’s been in office, they’re going to be in every one of those communities.”

"Republican Texas Gov. Greg Abbott announced Monday he would designate Tren de Aragua a terrorist organization and bring the “full weight of the government” on the gang,
according to The Texas Tribune.
The gang has been active in the state since 2021, and more than 3,000 illegal immigrants from Venezuela have been arrested since then, according to Abbott."

"..In 2023, the Department of Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) partnered with Peru to create a “Transnational Crime Investigation Unit”
to combat Tren de Aragua, according to Dialogo Americas. Peru is one of the many South American countries involved in the gang’s network for trafficking people and drugs."

“We’re not heavily scrutinizing anyone coming in,” Blair told the DCNF.
“We’re not detaining them. We’re using alternatives to detention, so no one’s really being vetted.”.. (Emphasis Mine)

(More information is contained in the article)

20 posted on 09/23/2024 7:24:22 AM PDT by Tilted Irish Kilt
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