Texas is offering a $5,000 reward for information leading to the identification and arrest of known or suspected members of the dangerous Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua (TdA).
Abbott declared the gang a “foreign terrorist organization” last week while announcing that the state was taking a more aggressive approach to targeting its members.
SUSPECTED TREN DE ARAGUA GANG MEMBERS IN AURORA, COLORADO, RELEASED ON $1,000 BOND
“Tren de Aragua has spread terror and carnage in every country they’ve been in, and Texas will not allow them to gain a foothold in our state,” Abbott said in a statement. “Texas will not let these thugs use our state as a base of operations to terrorize our citizens.”
Tipsters can provide information to authorities via the Texas Department of Public Safety’s website r by calling 1-800-252-TIPS (8477).
The Tren de Aragua is based mainly in Venezuela and has roughly 5,000 members between the South American country and the United States.
Abbott has directed the Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS) to elevate the gang to a Tier 1 gang and to create a TdA Strike Team that will identify and arrest its members.
Venezuelan migrants linked to the gang have been suspected of committing crimes, including murder, drug trafficking, sex crimes and extortion, in various parts of the U.S. as some enter the country illegally and are caught and released by border authorities.
In San Antonio, authorities recently arrested Eiber Gabriel Sira-Vargas, who is suspected of weapons trafficking in connection with the gang. He is being held by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).
Four members were arrested in Aurora, Colorado after a shooting which occurred near the Nome Street Apartments, one of the apartment buildings in Aurora which had reportedly been overtaken by armed members of Tren de Aragua.
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In Wisconsin, another TdA member was arrested for allegedly sexually assaulting a mother and abusing her daughter after he had been arrested and released earlier this year in Minneapolis.
U.S. Border Patrol agents in El Paso, Texas recently arrested a TdA member, USBP Chief Jason Ownes said Monday.
