Tren de Aragua gang members arrested hiding in NYC apartment next to daycare facility
Several suspected members of the violent Venezuelan gang Tren De Aragua (TdA) were recently apprehended in a New York City apartment building, located next to a daycare center, highlighting the gang’s infiltration into the general population in the sanctuary city. The raid, carried out by Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) and the NYPD’s federal task force on Dec. 5, resulted in the arrest of seven suspected gang members who were sought on multiple warrants after crossing the US-Mexico border.
The New York Post first reported on the Bronx bust, where the suspects were found hiding in a five-story apartment building adjacent to the Doña Juana Day Care facility. A law enforcement source revealed that a separate raid in Brooklyn led to the arrest of 22 additional gang members. Children were present at the daycare center during the raid, underscoring the dangerous proximity of the gang to innocent civilians.
TdA has exploited the lax southern border under the Biden-Harris administration, allowing its members to enter the US and engage in various violent crimes, including murders, police shootings, assaults, robberies, and gun smuggling into migrant shelters. The gang’s presence in the Bronx was discovered by tracking the ankle monitor of a suspected member, Jarwin Valero-Calderon, who had entered the US in August 2022 and was released with a court date but continued to commit crimes.
Valero-Calderon, along with other arrested gang members like Angel Gabriel Marquez Rodriguez and Jhonaiker Alexander Gil Cardozo, had amassed criminal records in multiple states before being taken into custody. The raids in New York City were part of a broader effort to dismantle TdA’s operations across the country, with the gang now operating in 16 states.
New York City Mayor Adams recently met with incoming border czar Tom Homan to discuss cooperation in targeting migrant criminals in the city, a move that was met with resistance from some Democrats. City Council Member Joe Borelli and Rep. Nicole Malliotakis expressed support for cracking down on criminal organizations like TdA and called for increased collaboration between the NYPD and ICE.
In a separate incident, two TdA members involved in an armed apartment invasion in Aurora, Colorado, were captured in the Bronx as part of a credit card scam and drug trafficking bust. A total of 15 suspected gang members were arrested following a six-month investigation into TdA’s criminal activities.
The apprehension of TdA members in New York City underscores the ongoing threat posed by transnational gangs and the importance of law enforcement agencies working together to safeguard communities from violent criminals. The collaborative efforts of HSI, the NYPD, and other agencies demonstrate a commitment to upholding public safety and holding perpetrators of crime accountable.
