Four confirmed members of the Venezuelan Tren de Aragua (TdA) gang were caught trying to cross the southern border into the US illegally, Texas Governor Greg Abbott has published.
Four members of the TdA were among the 22 suspects illegal migrants who was arrested on New Year’s Eve by the Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS) working in Val Verde County.
“Our top priority is the safety and protection of Texans, including the growing threat of the Tren de Aragua,” Abbott said in a statement.
Abbott, whose administration is cracking down on the gang terrorizing communities across the country, said the 22 migrants were from Colombia, Mexico, Peru and Venezuela. Eleven of the 22 were arrested for criminal trespassing, while the rest were family groups and were referred to the Border Patrol for processing.
VENEZUELA’S TREN DE ARAGUA MIGRANT GANG NOW OPERATING IN 16 COUNTRIES: REPORT
Tren de Aragua members arrested in Texas. (Fox News)
Four TdA members were among the group of nine citizens of Venezuela who claimed to be going to San Antonio, Irving and Corsicana, Texas. DPS special agents were able to verify their gang affiliation through social media apps on their phones, as well as their tattoos, Abbott said.
The individuals were identified as Segundo Ocando-Mejia, 39; Pedro Luis Salazar-Cuervo, 27; Antonio Joe Urruttia-Rojas, 18; and Levi Jesus Urrutia-Blanco, 18.
Ocando-Mejia had tattoos on his shoulders that indicated he might have rank or leadership within the gang, Abbott said.
Migrants make their way through a hole in razor wire in Texas in April. (David Peinado/ZUMA Press Wire)
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Abbott said he had designated the TdA as a foreign terrorist organization, and in September launched a statewide operation to aggressively target the TdA to disrupt their criminal operations. He ordered the DPS to elevate them to a Tier 1 gang and created a TdA strike team to identify and arrest TdA gang members.
Abbott said he would not tolerate the gang operating or gaining a foothold in Texas.
The gang was involved in all manner of violent crimes, including murders, shootings of police officers, assaults, robberies and smuggling weapons into migrant shelters. A Homeland Security memo cited by the New York Post in November said it did which operates in at least 16 countries.
“Until President Trump returns to the White House to provide our border“Texas will continue to hunt down dangerous criminals like TdA and put them behind bars to protect Texans from this vicious gang,” Abbott said.
Texas Governor Greg Abbott has said he will not allow TdA to gain a foothold in Texas. (Photo by Fox News/Joshua Comins)
Abbott announced that his Office of Public Safety is offering a reward of up to $5,000 for information leading to the identification and arrest of known or suspected TdA gang members who have been or are involved in criminal activity.
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The news comes just days after 22 members of the TdA gang were arrested in two raids in New York.
Several were arrested hiding in a Bronx apartment building next to a daycare center, a police source told Fox News, noting how the gang has infiltrated the general population in the sanctuary city.
