A recently declassified intelligence memo suggests that Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro is likely not explicitly directing the activities of the criminal gang Tren de Aragua in the United States. However, it says his leaders and officials probably tolerate and cooperate with the group at some level.

The memo appears to undermine President Donald Trump’s accusations that the criminal organization acts “at the direction, clandestine or otherwise, of the Maduro regime in Venezuela,” which he cited to justify his deportation policies, such as the invocation of the Alien Enemies Act of 1798.

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“The Maduro regime probably does not have a policy of cooperating with TDA and is not directing TDA movement to and operations in the United States,” says the declassified memo, first reported by the New York Times. 

In a statement to the Washington Examiner, a spokesperson from the Office of the Director of National Intelligence celebrated the findings as vindication for the Trump administration.

“The Office of the Director of National Intelligence fully supports the assessment that the foreign terrorist organization, Tren De Aragua, is acting with the support of the Maduro Regime, and thus subject to arrest, detention, and removal as alien enemies of the United States,” the spokesperson said.

The Trump administration cited the presence of Tren de Aragua in the U.S. to invoke the Alien Enemies Act, which allows the executive branch to detain or deport people from countries deemed hostile without traditional legal protections, often without due process. In his order invoking the law, Trump said Tren de Aragua is sponsored by and has infiltrated the Maduro regime.

“Maduro regime leadership probably sometimes tolerates TDA’s presence in Venezuela, and some government officials may cooperate with TDA for financial gain,” the intelligence report said.

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Tren de Aragua has expanded into at least seven South American countries. It operates through small, loosely organized cells that primarily engage in low-skill criminal activity. While the memo did not find that the Maduro regime directs or cooperates with the gang, it suggests some Venezuelan officials may tolerate its presence for financial or strategic reasons, especially in regions where government control is weak.

While the memo found that the Maduro government does not appear to have a policy of supporting Tren de Aragua, some U.S. intelligence agencies, including the FBI and Department of Homeland Security, believe that individual Venezuelan officials have helped facilitate the gang’s migration abroad. These actors are suspected of using Tren de Aragua members as proxies in countries such as Colombia, Chile, Ecuador, Peru, and the U.S. to further what they interpret as the regime’s broader objective of undermining regional stability and public safety.