The Government declared the Venezuelan criminal gang Tren de Aragua a terrorist organization

In a decree published early Tuesday, the government declared the Venezuelan criminal gang Tren de Aragua a terrorist organization, which had already been considered as such in other countries in the region and in the United States.

The text, signed by the Minister of Security, Patricia Bullrich, lists the reasons why Tren de Aragua is designated as a terrorist organization.

It is highlighted that " according to the confidential reports that justify this resolution, the Tren de Aragua organization represents a serious and multifaceted threat to national security ."

It also adds that, "in accordance with the aforementioned reports, it is noted that the Tren de Aragua organization engages in conduct linked to the crimes of drug trafficking, human trafficking, smuggling, human trafficking, kidnapping, extortion, money laundering, among others, and that on numerous occasions it uses terror to achieve its objectives."

It also explains that " the complexity and scope of addressing criminal conduct linked to organized crime requires a national effort to devise appropriate intervention strategies that allow for optimization in the allocation of resources and contribute to improving the results of investigations."

It adds that "organized crime constitutes a serious threat to national security and public order that demands urgent and forceful responses from the various State actors involved in the prevention, investigation and repression of organized crime."

Finally, they argue that " collaboration and the exchange of information facilitate the development of a more effective strategy that contemplates aspects related to the prevention , prosecution and punishment of those responsible for crimes."

And in this context, they emphasize that "consequently, it becomes necessary to immediately proceed with the relevant administrative procedures for the registration of the Tren de Aragua organization in the Public Registry of Persons and Entities Linked to Acts of Terrorism and Financing (Repet).

The origin of the Tren de Aragua mega-gang in Venezuela dates back to late 2009. A group of construction workers on a branch of the Venezuelan railway in the town of Aragua decided to begin illegal activities after the government failed to complete the railway works promised in the National Socialist Railway Development Plan presented in 2006.

With the massive diaspora of emigrants, caused by the sustained deterioration of the quality of life in that country, a product of the autocratic regime of Nicolás Maduro, the organization took advantage of the opportunity and expanded to all those places where Venezuelan immigrants are susceptible to extortion, kidnapping, human trafficking and drug trafficking operations.

The Tren de Aragua (TdA) gained media attention after Donald Trump declared them a terrorist organization . The organization is unique for its structure and its expansion methodology, which led it from Venezuela to weave a criminal network that has a presence in Chile, Peru, Colombia and reaches the United States.