Homeland Security warns vicious Venezuelan prison gang expands its territory to 16 states

As we go to print, the case against Jose Ibarra, 26, who is accused of brutally killing Georgia nursing student Laken Riley appears to be wrapping up.

The killing of Laken Riley has added fuel to the national debate over immigration when federal authorities said Ibarra illegally entered the U.S. in 2022 and was allowed to stay in the country while he pursued his immigration case.

Ibarra has been reported to be a member of the vicious Tren de Aragua gang. He enjoyed a taxpayer-funded free flight from the Biden administration, according to a court witness and sources, from Kennedy Airport in Queens to Atlanta, Georgia, in September 2023, according to the New York Post.

The free flight occurred fewer than six months before the illegal migrant allegedly hunted down and killed Riley.

With an unmanageable flood of migrants coming to New York, to try and ease the crisis, the city set up a reticketing center last year and provided migrants with federally funded one-way plane tickets to anywhere in the world.

Now we learn that the vicious Venezuelan prison gang has expanded its territory to at least 16 states, including California, according to an internal department intelligence memo from Homeland Security officials

Former DEA federal agent Wes Tabor is reporting that he has been inundated with calls from police departments across the United States, seeking guidance on combating the Venezuelan gang, which has emerged as a major criminal threat both regionally and on U.S. soil, according to the Associated Press.

Tabor, who headed the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration’s office in Caracas, Venezuela, in 2012, recalls the gang’s early days when it was still relatively unknown. At the time, Venezuela was a critical transit point for Colombian guerrilla-smuggled cocaine, governed by a regime with close ties to adversaries like Iran and Russia.

While the gang posed a danger to the U.S. Embassy personnel in Caracas, it was not viewed as a significant security concern for the United States. Today, that assessment has changed dramatically.

Now recognized as a transnational criminal organization, Tren de Aragua has rapidly expanded its operations across the Western Hemisphere. Its activities, including human smuggling, drug trafficking, extortion, and violent crimes, have placed it at the center of public safety concerns and political debate in the U.S., fueled by migration from Venezuela.

Then we provided them tax-payer funded plane rides to wherever they wanted to travel and set up operations.

The U.S. Department of the Treasury formally designated Tren de Aragua as a transnational criminal organization on July 11, 2024, highlighting its involvement in human smuggling, gender-based violence, money laundering, and illicit drug trafficking.

“This designation underscores the escalating threat it poses to American communities,” said Brian Nelson, Under Secretary for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence. “The Biden-Harris Administration is committed to using all tools to dismantle organizations like Tren de Aragua that exploit vulnerable populations, engage in cross-border crimes, and abuse the U.S. financial system.”

But only after we provided them free transportation, money and EBT cards.

The AP also reports that Tren de Aragua has diversified its operations to include illegal mining, kidnapping, and human trafficking. It also leverages its transnational networks to engage in sex trafficking and debt bondage, often targeting migrant women and girls. Victims who attempt to escape are frequently killed, with their deaths publicized as warnings to others.

The gang’s expansion has included infiltrating local criminal economies across South America, laundering money through cryptocurrency, and forging ties with Brazil’s Primeiro Comando da Capital, a notorious organized crime syndicate.

Tren de Aragua was sanctioned under Executive Order 13581, as amended, for its role as a significant transnational criminal organization. Additionally, the U.S. Department of State announced rewards of up to $12 million for information leading to the arrest or conviction of several gang leaders involved in transnational organized crime.

The murder of Laken Riley has intensified the spotlight on Tren de Aragua's activities in the United States. The case, marked by its brutality, serves as a grim reminder of the gang's disregard for human life and its willingness to resort to extreme violence to maintain control and instill fear.

“What sets this group apart is their extreme violence,” Tabor explained. “They’re ruthless, desperate, and operate without boundaries, having thrived for years with little confrontation from law enforcement. The stakes are now higher than ever to stop them.”

Maybe we should have stopped them at the border and vetted them before we invited them into our country. This is in no way an anti-immigration statement. It’s an anti-illegal immigration statement. We need to protect our citizens from criminals around the world. We have our own criminals, we don’t need more from the Venezuelan prisons.