(DailyAnswer.org) – A spree of at least 62 robberies in New York City has been linked by local law enforcement to the infamous Venezuelan Tren de Aragua gang. Illegal immigrants with alleged links to the gang have been taking advantage of special privileges granted by President Joe Biden’s administration that allow them to slip through the southern border and conduct crimes in the city.
In February 2024, the gang was reportedly infiltrating groups of thousands of migrants crossing the border. Border security faces challenges in effectively identifying gang members because of limited communication between the United States, Panama, and Venezuela. To further complicate matters, only higher-ranking gang members have gang-identifying tattoos.
San Antonio’s law enforcement also reported Venezuelan criminal activity that may be linked to Tren de Aragua. The Bexar County Sheriff’s Office stated that there are six Venezuelan migrants in its jail but could not comment on whether they had gang affiliations. In September 2023, the Venezuelan government claimed to have dismantled Tren de Aragua after sending 11,000 soldiers and police officers into the Tocoron prison housing them.
The gang of an estimated 5,000 criminals first appeared in 2014, and its activities are focused on robbery, kidnapping, drugs, extortion, prostitution, and illegal gold mining. The New York Police Department is reportedly searching for the gang’s ringleader, 30-year-old Victor Parra, who was released on bail in December 2023 after being arrested for grand larceny shortly after arriving in the US.
NYPD Chief Detective Joe Kenny stated that illegal immigrants in the gang are exploiting the city’s shelter system and that Parra runs his operation using WhatsApp to alert his gang members about crimes he needs them to commit, such as which phone to steal. When police arrived at Parra’s home with a search warrant, he was not at home.
The gang’s branch leader in Colombia, José Manuel Vera, who calls himself “Satan,” was arrested after kidnapping, torturing, and dismembering a business owner who did not pay up in an extortion scheme. Operators in New York are utilizing mopeds; the drivers make $100 a day, and the thieves make $300 to $600 a day for each phone they steal. The phones are then taken to Parra, where they are used to make illegal purchases before they are sent to Colombia to be reprogrammed.
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