Sen. Rubio: Tren de Aragua commit crimes because they are criminals, not because they are Venezuelans

Republican Senator from Florida, Marco Rubio, said this Friday that the implication of members of the dangerous Venezuelan gang "Tren de Aragua" in crimes in the United States should not harm migrants escaping from misery in Venezuela seeking a better life.

"Let something be very clear about the Tren de Aragua," Rubio wrote on the social media platform X. "These individuals are not committing crimes because they are Venezuelan; they are committing crimes because they are criminals," he stated in the post, where he also shared an image with the faces of foreigners who have been detained in the United States and who may have ties to the criminal organization.

Let's make sure we're clear about Tren de Aragua👇 pic.twitter.com/6A438UgtS9

— Senator Marco Rubio (@SenMarcoRubio) March 15, 2024

Rubio said on Saturday that the Biden administration "must designate the Tren de Aragua as a Transnational Criminal Organization," explaining that the designation would allow the federal government to impose sanctions on the gang and its members by freezing their assets and restricting their travels.

"President Biden must mobilize federal resources to counteract this gang before it spreads to more of our local communities," warned the Cuban-origin politician.

The senator mentioned the most relevant crimes of the gang since its members set foot on American soil for the first time: "The strangulation of a retired police officer from Miami-Dade County, the public beating of police officers in Times Square, the human trafficking of five women in the suburbs of Indianapolis."

"These crimes occurred hundreds of kilometers away in the United States, but they are united by their depravity and the sadistic gang that committed them: 'The Tren de Aragua,'" he emphasized.

El Tren de Aragua es una conocida organización criminal que se originó en las cárceles de Venezuela y se ha extendido en todo nuestro hemisferio.

Abro 🧵 sobre la presencia ILEGAL de integrantes del Tren de Aragua en nuestra nación. (1/4)

— Senator Marco Rubio (@SenMarcoRubio) March 16, 2024

The Tren de Aragua, a Venezuelan criminal megaband based in Tocorón prison, Venezuela, has around 2,700 members, including hitmen and collaborators, and has already managed to operate criminally in Colombia, Peru, Chile, Brazil, Bolivia, Ecuador, and Panama, with a significant increase in its activities abroad during the year 2020.