Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua is setting up shop in the nation’s capital, according to an internal Homeland Security memo, as the criminal organization known for theft schemes, human trafficking and taking aim at police officers now has a base in the heart of American politics.
The Homeland Security memo mentions that Tren de Aragua’s presence in the District of Columbia as well as parts of central and northern Virginia has grown alongside both areas’ rise in migrant populations.
The memo, first obtained by the New York Post, said it becomes “highly probable” that TDA will exercise greater influence in the region as more Venezuelans move in.
“Fully assessing the extent of TDA’s threat and areas of impact presents challenges to law enforcement due to difficulty confirming criminal actors as TDA,” read the Nov. 14 memo to police officials in Virginia.
Tren de Aragua has outposts in metropolitan areas across the country after crossing over the porous southern border — and the gang isn’t shy about announcing its presence.
The group overran an El Paso, Texas, hotel so it could establish a prostitution ring, plus organized armed takeovers of apartment buildings in the Denver suburbs.
TDA has bumped shoulders with local gangs in Chicago, and suspected gang members have opened fire on cops in New York City.
Just last week, Tennessee Bureau of Investigation Director David Rausch told Fox News that the gang has human trafficking operations in the state’s four major cities — Memphis, Nashville, Knoxville and Chattanooga.
Police have tied members to brutal acts of violence as well, such as the February slaying of Georgia nursing student Laken Riley. Jose Ibarra, 26, is accused of strangling the 22-year-old victim and beating her head in with a rock after he yanked her off a running trail.
Documented incidents involving TDA members around D.C. have been tame in comparison, according to the Homeland Security memo.
Authorities said a northwest Virginia hotel owner forced Venezuelan migrants into labor in January 2023 as a form of debt bondage. The memo didn’t go into what kind of debt the victims owed.
And in August 2023, Fairfax County Police arrested three TDA members on shoplifting charges. The suspects had tattoos associated with the gang, the memo said.
Officials said reports have TDA members living in D.C. and traveling to Virginia to carry out thefts, robberies and assaults.
The memo said the gang uses petty theft and fraud schemes to generate income so it can send money back to operatives in South America.
The Washington Times contacted D.C.’s Metropolitan Police Department, as well as Virginia police departments in Fairfax, Arlington, Prince William and Loudoun counties for comment.
A law enforcement source with MPD told The Times the department has had no internal communications about the Venezuelan gang, but added “MPD is usually way behind on things like this.”