Customs and Border Protection included Tren de Aragua in its list of gangs for fiscal year 2024. The list is published on the official CBP website.
With the list, border authorities keep track of the detention of alleged members of terrorist organizations. In the case of this criminal gang, which was born in the Tocorón prison in north-central Venezuela, the CBP report details that since 2023 they have detained at least 47 people who allegedly belong to the group.
Tren de Aragua places sixth on the list. It was only surpassed by criminal gangs such as MS-13 (Maras Salvatruchas) and Paisas (from Colombia).
Meanwhile, Venezuelan newspaper El Nacional recalled that "the list was published amid recent accusations by U.S. authorities that involve the gang in various criminal activities, including human trafficking."
Tren de Aragua is a powerful Venezuelan criminal gang that has spread throughout different countries in the Americas.
The name of this criminal organization comes from its origins when its members were part of a union of workers working on the construction of a railway project (which was never completed) in the state of Aragua between 2013 and 2015, which extorted contractors and sold jobs in the project.
