The bloodthirsty Venezuelan gang Torren de Aragua (TdA) is terrorizing neighborhoods across the country and is currently active in 16 states, according to a new Department of Homeland Security memo cited by the New York Post. It is said to be active.
This brutal gang is taking advantage of the loose southern border under the Biden-Harris administration, with legions of foot soldiers swarming into the United States and inflicting hell on unsuspecting communities.
The gang has been involved in all kinds of violent crimes, including murders, shootings of police officers, assaults, robberies, and smuggling guns into immigrant shelters.
The gang is also said to be involved in drug trafficking and sex trafficking of immigrant women in New York City, and members of the armed group have taken over apartment buildings in some states.
Human trafficking activity by Venezuelan gangs surges in Tennessee's four largest cities
These images from a Customs and Border Protection intelligence bulletin show Torren de Aragua's tattoo and identity. (ice)
On Friday's “Fox & Friends,” Tennessee Bureau of Investigation Director David Rausch warned of a spike in TdA trafficking in Nashville, Memphis, Knoxville and Chattanooga.
“This gang exploited [the border]…They go from human trafficking to organized retail theft, then into drug trafficking, and then take on cartels in extremely violent and bloody battles. ”
Earlier this month, the Department of Homeland Security announced the arrest of three TdA gang associates wanted for the murder of a 29-year-old man in Texas, two in Colorado and one in Mexico. did. Days earlier, police arrested three other suspects connected to TdA in connection with the kidnapping and murder of a Texas man whose body was found in August.
And now, according to someone, new york post The gang reportedly operates in an area that includes half of America's population.
In addition to New York City, Colorado, and Texas, the gang also has locations in California, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Louisiana, Nevada, New Jersey, North Carolina, Tennessee, and Wisconsin. , most recently Washington, D.C., Virginia, Montana, and Wyoming, according to the report, citing a Department of Homeland Security memo.
According to the report, a Department of Homeland Security memo titled “Tren de Aragua's (TdA) expansion across the United States presents challenges for law enforcement” states that as the gang expands, It is said that their “violent tendencies” are only increasing.
New report warns that bloodthirsty Venezuelan gangs' footprints will remain in US for 'decades'
Members of the Torren de Aragua group were seen in surveillance footage shared by the El Paso County Attorney's Office at the Gateway Hotel. (KFOX14/El Paso County Attorney's Office)
“As the population of Venezuelans continues to grow, violent TdA migration is very likely to occur,” the memo warns.
Fox News Digital has requested comment and a copy of the memo from the Department of Homeland Security.
The memo describes how the gang engages in low-level fraud and theft schemes and then ships the stolen funds back to South America “as a means to fund further criminal enterprises,” according to the New York Post. The paper reported.
In one of the incidents cited in the documents, a person believed to be a member of Torren de Aragua withdrew $118,000 from a Florida bank account in a “fraudulent check deposit” and then sold the money before the fraud was discovered. I sent the money to a Venezuelan bank account.
In another incident in Virginia, Fairfax County police arrested three suspected gang members in August 2023 on suspicion of shoplifting. The newspaper said one of the suspects had a fake Venezuelan ID and all three had the gang's signature tattoos.
The young teens are also said to be gang members. The news was announced in a Homeland Security Inspector General report earlier this year that confirmed the Biden-Harris administration had identified tens of thousands of unaccompanied migrant children as missing.
Juvenile members of Tren de Aragua, based at the Roosevelt Hotel in New York, are said to be carrying out a series of robberies in nearby Times Square. (Obtained by New York Post)
The report noted that as of May 2024, more than 291,000 unaccompanied migrant children had not received a court appearance notice. In addition, more than 32,000 unaccompanied immigrant children received notice to appear in court but did not appear for their immigration court hearings.
Rausch said TdA has “zero respect” for police and attacks law enforcement agencies across the country, especially when the suspect does not have immigration “detainees.” , added that there are limits to law enforcement agencies' ability to crack down on TdA-related activities.
“If we encounter them and they have a detainer, we can take them into custody. But otherwise, all we can do is find out if they are breaking the law. All we have to do is monitor and ensure that we don't. But that's a challenge,'' Rausch said, calling it an increasingly dangerous “cat-and-mouse game.”
Last month, the Department of Homeland Security recommended that more than 100 immigrants it had identified as having possible gang ties be placed on the FBI's watch list, but the agency overall has more than 600 possible ties. reported.
Migrants line up at San Diego's southern border in June. Many of Torren de Aragua's members entered the country illegally via the southern border. (Fox News)
The gang is believed to have originated in the Tocolon prison in Venezuela's Aragua state, and has since spread to Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Mexico, Peru and the United States. DHS said in a statement that some of the individuals identified were: A re-examination operation is underway to tackle gangs.
Meanwhile, the conservative Heritage Foundation released a brief on Torren de Aragua, pointing out how the criminal organization has become the latest transnational criminal organization to establish itself in the United States, and The increase coincided with a historic crisis in the world, he said.
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“This is a gang with a well-documented propensity for violence and ruthlessness,” Mark Morgan, a former acting Customs and Border Protection (CBP) commissioner, was quoted as saying.
“TdA is spreading criminal activity like a slow-growing cancer across our country, creating a preventable crime wave that will continue for decades,” he said.
The study also cites statistics from Venezuela showing a 25% decline in violent deaths between 2021 and 2022.
“It is not inconceivable to hypothesize a link to Venezuela's export of thousands of young offenders, many to the United States,” the study said.
FOX News' Elizabeth Heckman and Adam Shaw contributed to this report.
