EL PASO, TX - On Monday, August 26th, the Secretary of Public Safety for the Mexican border state Chihuahua, issued a warning that Mexican authorities have seen a large number of individuals they believe are members of the violent Venezuelan gang, Tren de Aragua (TdA) operating in the state and passing through to illegally cross the southern border near El Paso.
According to Fox News, the report comes after the Treasury Department in July sanctioned TdA as a transnational criminal organization. In that report, the Treasure Department noted that the gang has committed human trafficking, extortion, money laundering, and drug trafficking that pose a "deadly criminal threat" across the Western Hemisphere.
At the time the report said, "Tren De Aragua leverages its transnational networks to traffic people, especially migrant women and girls, across borders for sex trafficking and debt bondage. Tren de Aragua members often kill them and publicize their deaths as a threat to others."
Earlier in the month of August, U.S. officials warned that the gang, which originated in Aragua, Venezuela, is infiltrating the United States. Rep. Tony Gonzales (R-TX) has gone as far as to describe the gang as "MS-13 on steroids."
Speaking with Fox News Digital, Gonzales said, "They're extremely aggressive. It's not as if they're a passive group, or they want to quietly go about things. They're coming from Venezuela, one of the most war-torn countries over the last decade. So, they're battle-hardened in many ways. And they've made this trek from there to here. But they are also becoming ... more organized and more brazen."
Members of the violent gang are suspected of being behind a recent video that captured a group of men armed with handguns and rifles bursting through the doors of an apartment complex in Aurora, Colorado, that residents say have been overrun by gang activity. One resident who spoke with Fox News Digital said, "This is organized. They patrol the property with guns visibly, like they're not trying to hide them. There's no repercussion. These are ghosts."
Another resident told Fox News Digital that the gang has been seen dealing drugs from the apartment building. When discussing TdA's activities in the city, Aurora City Councilwoman Danielle Jurinsky said "without a doubt that there is sex trafficking now going on."
In Mexico, Secretary of Public Safety Gilberto Loya said that the group has been responsible for multiple homicides in Central Mexico and that it is his hope that the border state can get out in front of the problem. He said, "We have detected, thanks to collaboration with the United States, that a large number of people who belong to Tren de Aragua have passed through Chihuahua. Seeing what is going on in [Central Mexico], we want to be ahead of the curve here in Chihuahua."
According to reports, two elected officials say that Venezuelan gangs are taking over apartment buildings in the Denver, Colorado, area. Police, however, have yet to confirm those claims, saying that the gang's influence in the area is "isolated." Jurinsky said that police have told her that Tren de Aragua has taken over at least four apartment complexes in Aurora. Jurinsky said that she has helped three residents move out of those complexes and said that five other people shared stories about the gang's activity, including shootouts.
However, a report from KDVR says that the Denver Police Department (DPD) issued a statement on Wednesday, August 28th, saying that it was "not aware" of any Denver apartment buildings being "taken over" buy TdA. The statement said, "There are reasons to believe that members of this gang are tied to crime in the area. However, DPD is not aware of any apartment buildings being 'taken over' by this gang in Denver."
On August 19th, the Aurora Police Department announced that it would join forces with the Colorado State Patrol and the Colorado Bureau of Investigation for a special task force to address concerns about the Tren de Aragua gang. The main goal of the task force will be to assist agencies around the area and maximize resources through sharing intelligence in ongoing investigations.
According to Fox News, the report comes after the Treasury Department in July sanctioned TdA as a transnational criminal organization. In that report, the Treasure Department noted that the gang has committed human trafficking, extortion, money laundering, and drug trafficking that pose a "deadly criminal threat" across the Western Hemisphere.
At the time the report said, "Tren De Aragua leverages its transnational networks to traffic people, especially migrant women and girls, across borders for sex trafficking and debt bondage. Tren de Aragua members often kill them and publicize their deaths as a threat to others."
Earlier in the month of August, U.S. officials warned that the gang, which originated in Aragua, Venezuela, is infiltrating the United States. Rep. Tony Gonzales (R-TX) has gone as far as to describe the gang as "MS-13 on steroids."
Speaking with Fox News Digital, Gonzales said, "They're extremely aggressive. It's not as if they're a passive group, or they want to quietly go about things. They're coming from Venezuela, one of the most war-torn countries over the last decade. So, they're battle-hardened in many ways. And they've made this trek from there to here. But they are also becoming ... more organized and more brazen."
Members of the violent gang are suspected of being behind a recent video that captured a group of men armed with handguns and rifles bursting through the doors of an apartment complex in Aurora, Colorado, that residents say have been overrun by gang activity. One resident who spoke with Fox News Digital said, "This is organized. They patrol the property with guns visibly, like they're not trying to hide them. There's no repercussion. These are ghosts."
Another resident told Fox News Digital that the gang has been seen dealing drugs from the apartment building. When discussing TdA's activities in the city, Aurora City Councilwoman Danielle Jurinsky said "without a doubt that there is sex trafficking now going on."
In Mexico, Secretary of Public Safety Gilberto Loya said that the group has been responsible for multiple homicides in Central Mexico and that it is his hope that the border state can get out in front of the problem. He said, "We have detected, thanks to collaboration with the United States, that a large number of people who belong to Tren de Aragua have passed through Chihuahua. Seeing what is going on in [Central Mexico], we want to be ahead of the curve here in Chihuahua."
According to reports, two elected officials say that Venezuelan gangs are taking over apartment buildings in the Denver, Colorado, area. Police, however, have yet to confirm those claims, saying that the gang's influence in the area is "isolated." Jurinsky said that police have told her that Tren de Aragua has taken over at least four apartment complexes in Aurora. Jurinsky said that she has helped three residents move out of those complexes and said that five other people shared stories about the gang's activity, including shootouts.
However, a report from KDVR says that the Denver Police Department (DPD) issued a statement on Wednesday, August 28th, saying that it was "not aware" of any Denver apartment buildings being "taken over" buy TdA. The statement said, "There are reasons to believe that members of this gang are tied to crime in the area. However, DPD is not aware of any apartment buildings being 'taken over' by this gang in Denver."
On August 19th, the Aurora Police Department announced that it would join forces with the Colorado State Patrol and the Colorado Bureau of Investigation for a special task force to address concerns about the Tren de Aragua gang. The main goal of the task force will be to assist agencies around the area and maximize resources through sharing intelligence in ongoing investigations.
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Comments
2024-08-31T16:39-0500 | Comment by: Destiny
thank you for making aware. i pray for you LE and innocent safety. mercy you LE has enough to deal with. We need country wide revival . God bless all of you n keep you
2024-09-02T06:33-0500 | Comment by: arthur
I agree with Destiny's comment, we need revival badly, but at the same time, we need to man up in this country, and the whole of law enforcement all across the country needs to remember the oath that it took, both those that were in the military, as well as those that weren't, but still took one, and take it seriously. That oath is not one of loyalty to politicians, or necessarily the people over you, if the orders given to you are illegal, but it's to the PEOPLE you are sworn to serve and protect. No more of this 'standing down' and allowing people to be hurt, no more of this arresting people for no reason, stop following bad, unconstitutional orders, just arrest the illegals, hold them, and quite frankly, when the DA's, Prosecutors, and so on break the law, then maybe it's long past time to arrest them as well. They are not above being criminally charged for endangering the welfare of the public at large. There are actually criminal charges on the books that they can and should have been arrested for a long time ago, which would have put a stop to this madness already, but no one has had the guts to do it. Maybe it's that time....
2024-09-03T12:01-0500 | Comment by: Bruce
Let's be honest. They don't have to "sneak" across.
2024-09-05T15:37-0500 | Comment by: Carlton
Mexico is bussing them to the border .