In another coordinated law enforcement effort, 27 people with ties to the Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua and splinter group Anti-Tren have been indicted on racketeering, sex trafficking, drug trafficking, and firearms charges in New York.
Federal, state and local officials held a press conference Tuesday that included agents from Homeland Security Investigations in New York, Border Czar Tom Homan and New York City Mayor Eric Adams.
Officials say victims were trafficked from Venezuela, forced into sex work, and controlled with threats, kidnappings, and violence.
“Today, we have filed charges against 27 alleged members, former members, and associates of Tren de Aragua, for committing murders and shootings, forcing young women trafficked from Venezuela into commercial sex work, robbing and extorting small businesses, and selling ‘tusi,’ a pink powdery drug that has become their calling card,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Matthew Podolsky. “Today’s indictments make clear that this Office will work tirelessly to keep the law-abiding residents of New York City safe.”
Homan and Mayor Adams said the targeted takedown shows why federal-local law enforcement cooperation matters—and blasted a lawsuit blocking ICE access to Rikers Island.
Homan said this is what successful police work and immigration enforcement looks like, and it’s why he has been working with Mayor Adams since November. The New York City Council filed a lawsuit against Adams over his administration’s decision to bring federal immigration agents back to Rikers Island.
“I hope the people who filed the lawsuit sees this press conference today, because what you see today is the result of collaboration between local and federal law enforcement,” Homan said. “No one can argue what happened here in the last several months that resulted in 27 TdA being indicted. No one can argue that doesn’t make the streets of New York safer.”
Adams said his mission is to rid every one of these dangerous gangs from New York City and he’s unapologetic about that mission. These are transnational criminal gangs that have terrorized people in their own country and here in America.
“We are not going to be a safe harbor for criminals,” Adams said. “Let me tell you something, I won’t have a tequila drink with a gang member. I won’t be hanging out with them and hugging them and acting like they are victims. They are not victims. They create victims by their actions.”
Adams did not mince words during the press conference, saying as a former police officer he takes threats and violence against other officers very seriously.
“When you start to attack law enforcement agencies from doing their job, you’re insulting the men and women who have placed their lives on the front lines,” he said.
Adams said being a part of the American dream is not committing armed robberies, shooting at police officers, and forcing illegal immigrants into sex trafficking.
“The question we must answer is ‘Whose side are you on?’” Adams asked. “Are you on the side of those who are carrying these illegal guns, wreaking havoc, sex trafficking, and harming innocent people, regardless of their documentation, or are you on the side of hard-working New Yorkers and Americans? I’m clear on which side I’m on.”
Homan also credited New York Police Department, Homeland Security Investigations in New York and U.S. Marshals involved in the investigation and arrests.
“This is what law enforcement is about,” Homan said. “This is the results you get when cops work with cops.”
Acting U.S. Attorney Matthew Podolsky announced the indictments charging individuals connected to Tren de Aragua and a splinter group known as Anti-Tren, Fox 5 New York reports.
- The Tren de Aragua indictment charges six alleged members of the gang.
- The Anti-Tren indictment charges 21 individuals, including former Tren de Aragua members.
Members of the gang allegedly trafficked women referred to as “multadas,” smuggled them across borders, and forced them into sex work to pay off debts. The gang also engaged in:
- Trafficking of controlled substances, including “tusi,” a drug mixture that contains ketamine.
- Armed robberies and extortion.
- Murders and assaults, often targeting former members or rival factions.
Investigators have 21 of the 27 defendants in federal custody. Five were arrested in operations carried out Monday and Tuesday. And Homan is doubling down on going after Tren de Aragua, MS-13, and other transnational organized crime (TOC) organizations.
“Every member of TDA should be on the run because the Trump administration is committed to removing every single member of TDA and MS-13 from this country,” Homan said during the press conference. “The Trump administration has been serious from day one. We are going to concentrate on public safety threats and national security threats.”
Tren de Aragua has spread across the country under Biden’s open border policy, with reports of gang members taking over apartment complexes in Colorado last summer. In January, a judge ruled the Edge at Lowry complex in Aurora should be shut down because it poses an “imminent threat” to the public, The New York Post reports.
Attorney General Pam Bondi added, “Tren de Aragua is not just a street gang—it is a highly structured terrorist organization. Today’s indictments and arrests span three states and will devastate TdA’s infrastructure as we work to completely dismantle and purge this organization from our country.”
The TdA gang terrorized fellow citizens in Venezuela, where the gang originated, and other Central American countries. The New York indictments are the first to name Tren de Aragua as a criminal enterprise in the United States.
Homan also slammed a lawsuit that temporarily is blocking Mayor Adams from allowing ICE agents on Rikers Island. New York City considers itself a sanctuary city, harboring illegals who have been accused of crimes.
“When you have a sanctuary city policy, police have to go into the community to arrest the bad guys,” Homan said. “That means more officers in your neighborhood, that means more collateral arrests.”
