How violent Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua has racked up 517 arrests in NYC this year alone
The violent Venezuelan super gang Tren de Aragua has racked up more than 500 arrests this year in New York City alone as the mobs bloodthirsty members continue to unleash a wave of crime across the US.
The violent Venezuelan super gang Tren de Aragua has racked up more than 500 arrests this year in New York City alone as the mobs bloodthirsty members continue to unleash a wave of crime across the US.
NYPD officers have already made 517 arrests of Tren de Aragua (TdA) associates and suspected co-conspirators across the city since January this year, according to new crime statistics obtained by The New York Post.
The majority of arrests were on charges of robbery and grand larceny, but the gangsters rap sheets also include assault and car theft raps, the data revealed.
More than half the bookings occurred in midtown Manhattans busiest retail neighborhoods, according to the stats, with with 295 busts having taken place near tourist hotspots.
The force has identified 41 migrant TdA mobsters, but officers suspect there are more than 200 members who have yet to be documented.
Dubbed the epitome of evil, TdA is best known as the Venezuelan prison gang that transformed itself into a international crime group through ruthless child prostitution and sex trafficking rings in South America. Its members have been crossing over into the US in recent years amid a wave of Venezuelan migrants.
The violent Venezuelan super gang Tren de Aragua has racked up more than 500 arrests this year in New York City alone, new crime statistics reveal. Pictured are NYPD officers arresting a suspected Tren de Aragua (TdA) member
Suspected TdA members pose as if they were carrying gun in the streets of the New York
The 517 arrests, which occurred between January and the start of October, include known TdA gangsters, members of a junior subset, and other associates and co-defendants.
The 41 confirmed mobsters amassed 143 of the arrests, the data revealed.
It is unclear how many arrests were linked to the offshoot youth gang, who call themselves Diablos de la 42 - which translates to devils of 42nd Street- and have members are as young as 11-years-old, the Post reported.
Fifty-seven per cent of busts took place in midtown and neighboring precincts, the crime report showed.
And roughly 48 per cent of the arrests occurred near popular landmarks such as Times Square, Rockefeller Center and Radio City Music Hall.
While officers have made 45 per cent more arrests this year than they did when the group started arriving two years ago, it appears they have barely made a dent in identifying members of the TdA network.
When you add associates and co-defendants that arent in the [NYPD gang] database, theres 80 more individuals who are candidates for the database, and possibly hundreds as arrest associates in other crimes, a law enforcement source told the newspaper.
In January, a video showing a group of migrants brawling with police in Times Square touched off a political furor and renewed debate over a long-standing New York City policy that limits cooperation between local police and federal immigration authorities
The brutal attack happened in Times Square in January this year when officers attempted to disperse a disorderly group. Seven suspects were arrested and charged with Robbery and Felony Assault following the incident
Kelvin Servita Arocha, 20, (left) and Wilson Juarez, 22 (right) - two of the six men involved in the attack - were TdA members, according to Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials who confirmed their criminal affiliation to several media outlets
The gangs exploits in the Big Apple has recently garnered much media attention.
Among the most notorious busts was that of Bernardo Raul Castro Mata, 19, who has been jailed on attempted murder charges for allegedly shooting two NYPD officers.
Castro Mata allegedly made a hospital-bed confession admitting to being part of a TdA crew that would pull off armed heists by posing as food delivery workers.
Two TdA mobsters were charged earlier this year over the beating of New York City police officers.
Back on January 27, two NYPD cops approached a group of migrants who were blocking the sidewalk in Times Square.
When officers tired to arrest one of the Venezuelan men, the confrontation turned violent with migrants kicking and hitting them.
It turned out that Kelvin Servita Arocha, 20, and Wilson Juarez, 22 - two of the six men involved - were TdA members, according to Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials who confirmed their criminal affiliation to several media outlets.
Yohenry Brito, 24, was arraigned in Manhattan criminal court in February for beating up two NYPD officers in Times Square
Yohenry Brito and Jandry Barros are walked Manhattan Criminal Court after they were arrested over the Times Square attack
A junior gang member, whose name has been withheld due to his age, was busted 11 times over the span of five months before he was jailed. The teen, known as Little Devil, is one of five adolescents identified as Diablo members.
He reportedly crossed the border in Texas in May 2023 and was living in the Roosevelt Hotel in Midtown with his mom before allegedly carrying out his crime spree.
The TdA gang has been found to have taken part in cell phone thefts on mopeds, participated in thefts at stores, and have sold a pink, powdery drug known as Tusi, according to the New York Times.
Just days ago, NYPD warned of the gangs growing power in Gotham.
Right now what we have, I like to call a "perfect storm" of sorts. We have individuals, tremendously brazen, absolutely ruthless individuals that have committed a multitude of crimes with basically no repercussions, NYPD Assistant Chief Jason Savino of the detective bureau told Fox 5.
What started out as a robbery crew...20 individuals arrested for upwards of 50 robberies. Out of those 20 individuals, every single one of them is on the streets today.
Tren de Araguas bloodthirsty members have unleashed a wave of crime across the US
Savino went on to explain how the notoriously clever and adaptable crime ring is recruiting kids to do their dirty work because minors face little or no legal consequences if caught.
This is the first time weve seen structure with Tren de Aragua. Formally it was kind of scattered, all over the place, but now, were seeing that structure....where people are recruiting these younger members, as young as 11, and theyve been described as these robbery incidents as young as eight years old, Savino added.
TdA is operating mostly in Times Square with a splinter group called Los Diablos de la 42 (or the devils of 42nd Street in Spanish) setting up shop on 42nd Street.
That Times Square is a draw, Savino stated. You have to remember, thats the gem of the city. You know, when you can post up in Times Square, thats the crème de la crème.
