Texas Governor Greg Abbott has announced that the state will take an aggressive stance against the violent Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua (TdA), declaring the group a “foreign terrorist organization.”
Governor Abbott announced at a press conference in Houston on Monday that Texas is launching a comprehensive statewide operation to aggressively target the dangerous Venezuelan gang, also known as TdA (Tren de Aragua), to disrupt the gang's criminal operations and deny it a foothold in the state.
“Today in Houston, I designated Tren de Aragua a Foreign Terrorist Organization. Texas will aggressively target them to disrupt their criminal operations and cut off their foothold in our state,” Governor Abbott said in a post on Twitter. “Texas is the wrong state for them to do business.”
Governor Abbott has directed the Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS) to elevate TdA to a Tier 1 gang and to create TdA Strike Teams to identify and arrest TdA gang members.
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Texas Governor Greg Abbott announced Monday that the state plans to target Venezuelan gangs that are notorious for brutal violence and murder and pose a threat to the safety of Texans. (X/@GregAbbott_TX)
“The recent expansion and power of the violent Venezuelan gang, Tren de Aragua, is a dangerous and deadly challenge facing our state and our nation,” said Governor Abbott. “Our number one concern is the safety and security of all Texans.”
“Our goal is to protect Texas from the growing gang threat. We will not allow gangs to use Texas as a base of operations to terrorize our citizens. Gangs are being targeted and we are going after them,” Abbott continued.
Governor Abbott was joined by DPS Director Steve McCraw, Texas Border Patrol Commissioner Mike Banks and Chris Cabrera, Vice President of the National Border Patrol Council.
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“Tren de Aragua gangs are like cockroaches,” said DPS director McCraw. “They multiply quickly. Small incursions into communities can become epidemic if not aggressively pursued. These Venezuelan thugs are very combative, violent and certainly adaptable.”
“They are always involved in cases that start with human trafficking, then they go on to extortion, kidnapping, rape, assault and sex trafficking of immigrants. Governor Abbott has made it clear that we will never allow these gangs to gain a foothold in Texas,” McCraw vowed.
The designation would allow Texas to use its courts to curb gang criminal activity, use civil asset forfeiture to seize their property and increase criminal penalties while they are being prosecuted.
Last year, Governor Abbott Senate Bill 1900 Texas has passed legislation that defines international drug cartels and criminal gangs as foreign terrorist organizations and increases penalties for distributing illegal drugs and operating drug trafficking houses.
TdA has also wreaked havoc in Colorado.
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According to a statement provided to Fox News by ICE on Thursday, four Venezuelan nationals were identified as being in the United States illegally. (Eduardo Romero, Aurora Police Department)
Four Venezuelan members of the Tren de Aragua gang Arrests in Aurora They have been confirmed to be illegal immigrants, an ICE spokesperson previously told Fox News.
The four Venezuelan nationals, ages 19 to 24, illegally crossed the southern border from Texas under the Biden administration in 2022 and 2023. All four were arrested by Aurora police, and ICE has filed detention requests for two of them.
The four were arrested following a shooting near the Nome Street Apartments, one of the Aurora apartment complexes allegedly taken over by armed members of the Tren de Aragua group.
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Tren de Aragua is Mainly Venezuela There are approximately 5,000 members in South America and the United States combined.
According to the House Homeland Security Committee, there have been at least 7.8 million encounters. Illegal immigration Under the Biden administration, immigration inspections by the Immigration and Refugee Agency (ICE) at the southwest border are decided on a case-by-case basis.
Fox News Digital's Jasmine Baer contributed to this report.
