DHS Links Over 600 Migrants to Venezuelan Gang

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has identified over 600 migrants in the U.S. with potential links to Tren de Aragua, a Venezuelan gang associated with increasing criminal activities, including sex trafficking and violence against law enforcement. Of these, approximately 100 are confirmed gang members, leading DHS to recommend their addition to an FBI watchlist. The gang operates in at least 15 states and has been implicated in numerous crimes since October 2022, with over 100 arrests related to TDA and many facing immigration violations. Meanwhile, a large migrant caravan from southern Mexico, consisting of about 2,000 individuals, is heading toward the U.S. amid concerns about changing immigration policies following the upcoming elections. This caravan includes migrants worried that the Biden administration’s CBP One app, which facilitates entry for many, could be curtailed. Additionally, recent U.S. policy changes have left thousands of migrants from Venezuela, Nicaragua, Haiti, and Cuba in limbo at the Mexican border, fearing the loss of humanitarian parole benefits.