Venezuela Confirms Gang Leader Among 175 US Deportees

The Trump administration is employing a point system under the 1798 Alien Enemies Act to determine which Venezuelans may be deported as suspected members of the Tren de Aragua gang, with a threshold of eight points for deportation eligibility. This system allows ICE agents discretion for lower scores, requiring supervisor consultation for deportation decisions. Recently, Venezuelan authorities confirmed the return of 175 deported migrants from the U.S., including a gang leader from a different organization, El Cagon, marking the first acknowledgment of a criminal among the deportees. Interior Minister Diosdado Cabello stated that none of the returned migrants were affiliated with Tren de Aragua. The cooperation between the U.S. and Venezuela on deportations resumed after a brief interruption due to U.S. sanctions on Venezuela's oil sector, with a total of 918 deportees returning to Venezuela since the agreement was reinstated. The U.N. reports nearly eight million Venezuelans have fled the country amid an ongoing economic crisis.