EL PASO, Texas (KTSM) – U.S. Rep. Tony Gonzales, R-Texas, along with 20 lawmakers from across the nation, are calling on President Joe Biden to address the escalating threat posed by the Tren de Aragua, or “Aragua Train,” a criminal gang that has infiltrated its way into the United States and into other countries.
In a joint effort to combat the growing influence of the criminal gang, Gonzales and lawmakers drafted a letter urging Biden to take decisive action and designate the criminal group as a Transnational Criminal Organization (TCO).
The group’s resolution comes from growing concerns between law enforcement agencies, including the FBI, regarding the gang’s expanding reach and its violent crimes.
The letter highlights the urgency of the situation by mentioning the gang’s involvement in heinous crimes, including the murders of retired police officer Jose Luis Sanchez Valera and nursing student Laken Riley.
Tren de Aragua is known for engaging in a range of crimes like extortion, human smuggling, sex trafficking, among others, according to the FBI.
The resolution proposed by lawmakers calls on the president to “deploy necessary resources and sanctions that will help to curb the escalating crime and violence threatening communities across the United States.”
Border Patrol Agent Ammon Blair told KTSM that the biggest problem with cracking down on the gang is their lack of criminal records from Venezuela and the strained US-Venezuela relations, hindering information exchange.
Refugio Corrales, a spokesperson with Customs and Border Protection said that when Border Patrol detains migrants and they have been processed and classified, they check for tattoos to determine if there are any ties to gangs or cartels.
“Sometimes migrants have criminal history, and they will have tattoos that are associated with the cartel. Some of these migrants will confess to being a part of an actual cartel association,” said Corrales.
Gonzales said it is important that the U.S. government works with other countries like Mexico, to gather information on the gang.
“This is one of the things I’ve asked the Mexican government for, to work with us, to help us bridge that gap with Venezuelans so we can determine who these actors are.” said Gonzales. “When we find out that they are indeed criminals, there has to be repercussions and they have to be deported immediately.”
Corrales said although there may be communication challenges between different countries, they do the best they can.
“Our job is to communicate with the country the best that we can and get the information out there and identify these subjects the best that we can. Our intelligence groups work great with different organizations,” said Corrales.
In a statement sent to KTSM, El Paso Sector Chief Patrol Agent Anthony Scott Good said the following:
“Transnational Criminal Organizations pose a threat by attempting to smuggle criminals into our country. Dangerous criminals endanger our communities when they often continue to disregard rule of law. The El Paso Sector agents are committed to their duties of protecting the American people, safeguarding our borders, and enhancing the nation’s economic prosperity.”
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