New York's immigrant-friendly “sanctuary city” status has allowed a violent Venezuelan gang known as the Tren de Aragua to operate actively inside local migrant shelters, handcuffing police officers and giving secrets to immigration officials, law enforcement sources told The Washington Post.
The gang has infiltrated the shelter system and built a criminal organization that traffics drugs, guns and women across the five boroughs, but its strict policies largely prohibit the NYPD from guarding the facilities and bar the city from tipping off federal immigration authorities about dangerous illegal immigrants, sources said.
“This was an unintended consequence of the current administration's policies,” a source at U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement in New York told The Post. “But the New York City Council and the mayor's office have made the problem worse with policies that ignore federal law.”
“They claim to be protecting communities from ICE, yet they are releasing dangerous criminals back into the communities they prey on.”
Cities and states that have declared immigrant sanctuary status (including California, Illinois, Colorado, Massachusetts and New York) have pledged not to cooperate with federal immigration authorities.
This means that local authorities will not detain illegal immigrants wanted for ICE, nor will they report immigrant fugitives in custody for local crimes to the federal government.
Immigrants convicted locally are typically released after serving their sentences and are not held in custody until Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents arrest them and begin deportation proceedings under the sanctuary policy.
In New York City, the policy was adopted decades ago and then codified under former Mayor Bill de Blasio, and is still in place under the City Council's jurisdiction.
For the NYPD, this means the city's Health, Hospital and Homeless Services Agency will severely restrict police access to migrant shelters and health services across the five boroughs.
“Sanctuary city status eliminates the fear of deportation,” said NYPD Sergeant John Chell.
“If you're an immigrant member of the TDA or another criminal organization, and you know the existing laws and the existing thinking on prosecution, and you know you're not going to be deported, it's worth the risk to them,” the police chief told The Washington Post.
Police are barred from patrolling shelters housing asylum seekers except in response to 911 calls, health emergencies or when served with a warrant or summons through a “burdensome” process, according to the sources.
Still, police investigations have been hampered. Last month, police raided a migrant shelter on Randalls Island after a tip that Tren de Aragua had a gun in his car, but the operation was thwarted when gang members were tipped off and hid the guns there.
Investigators suspect that private security at the facility may have tipped off the migrants, the people said.
“The biggest challenge is we don't have the infrastructure in place to share information,” a law enforcement source told The Post on Monday. “Randalls Island is ideal because it's large and secluded, which is where we can exploit it.”
Sources say private security guards, who are barred from working with the NYPD, allow guns and drugs into the shelters because food deliveries in which these items are concealed are not screened or passed through metal detectors before entry.
Meanwhile, Tren de Aragua, whose members are hiding among the tens of thousands of migrants streaming into the United States, is recruiting new members inside the shelters.
Mayor Eric Adams, speaking at a press conference, called the city's sanctuary designation a “mistake” and blamed the City Council for the restrictive policy.
“I wish I had that power and authority, and the power and authority to amend the sanctuary city law,” Adams told reporters on Sept. 6.
“If someone commits a violent felony, I don't think we should be working with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to deport that person after they've served their sentence,” he said.
At a press conference on August 27, the mayor said immigrants who commit crimes “should not be able to stay in our country after they have served their sentences.”
But critics question why Governor Adams has not pursued an executive order that would reduce some of the restrictions that come with sanctuary city designations.
“Our number one priority is the safety of every individual in our care and New Yorkers as a whole, which is why all of our migrant shelters have 24-hour security and screen all bags and packages, including food delivery bags,” a city hall spokesperson said. “We are clear that anyone who violates our code of conduct or poses a risk to the safety of other shelter residents or staff may be denied shelter access.”
New York Police Department and ICE officials did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
