Texas declares the ‘Tren de Aragua’ a terrorist organization

• The Tren de Aragua Gang is Now a Terrorist Organization.
• Texas is the first state to allocate resources to combat them.
• Venezuelans are a danger due to their various violent crimes.

Texas has declared the Tren de Aragua gang a terrorist organization according to Governor Greg Abbott in Houston.

According to Greg Abbott, the Tren de Aragua gang, formed in Venezuelan prisons, is responsible for human trafficking into Texas.

The Tren de Aragua also commits various crimes ranging from homicide, extortion, kidnapping, and human trafficking from South America to the United States.

Now, members of the Tren de Aragua arrested in Texas will face charges as members of a foreign terrorist organization.

Texas Declares Tren de Aragua Gang Members Terrorists

Governor Greg Abbott held a press conference at noon on Monday, September 16, 2024, in Houston, Texas.

Agents from the Texas Department of Public Safety (TxDPS) will pursue the now-terrorists of the Tren de Aragua.

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Greg Abbott sat at a table with the slogan «Law and Order in Texas» in front and flanked by TxDPS agents.

“We will not allow them to use Texas as their base of operations to terrorize our citizens… Texas is a state of law and order,” said Abbott.

Their crimes range from kidnapping to extortion

The reason for Governor Abbott’s press conference in Houston, Texas, was linked to the crimes of the Tren de Aragua.

Steve McCraw, Chief of TxDPS, stated that in Houston, Texas, the now-terrorists of the Tren de Aragua are linked to several violent crimes.

In Houston, members of the Tren de Aragua are responsible for human trafficking, extortion, kidnapping, and other crimes, according to Steve McCraw.

For now, TxDPS agents are unsure how many members of the Tren de Aragua are operating in various Texas cities.

El Paso, Texas, is the entry zone for the Tren de Aragua

As recently as July 2024, the United States Department of the Treasury declared the Tren de Aragua a transnational criminal organization.

Texas is the first state in the United States to elevate the Tren de Aragua, composed of Venezuelans, to the category of a terrorist organization.

However, other states in the country, such as Colorado, New Mexico, Illinois, and even New York, have faced severe problems due to the Tren de Aragua.

For TxDPS, the infiltration zone for Tren de Aragua members from Mexico into the United States is through the city of El Paso, in southwest Texas.

Authorities Will Allocate Resources to Combat Them

Governor Greg Abbott assured that TxDPS, along with other law enforcement agencies, aims to prevent the growth of the Tren de Aragua in Texas.

By elevating the Tren de Aragua to a terrorist organization, it allows the Texas government to allocate more resources to combat their violent crimes.

However, Governor Abbott did not reveal how much money or when Texas will begin allocating resources to stop the violent rise of the Tren de Aragua.

In El Paso, Texas, a hotel in the city was literally taken over as an operations center by members of the Tren de Aragua, according to the governor.

“We will impose harsher criminal sanctions,” said the governor

The violent Tren de Aragua gang members began in Venezuela’s prisons and are now a transnational criminal organization, Abbott said.

“We will bring the full weight of the government against the Tren de Aragua,” said Governor Greg Abbott as he declared the gang a terrorist organization.

People associated with the Tren de Aragua in Texas may also face consequences, as the Texas government could confiscate assets resulting from criminal activity.

“We will seize their properties and impose harsher criminal sanctions to keep them in prison,” said Abbott regarding the arrests.

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