Latest news with #Anti-Tren
New York Post
13-05-2025
- Politics
- New York Post
Emerging Venezuelan gang ‘more violent' than Tren de Aragua targeting rural America, expert warns
Advertisement An emerging Venezuelan gang has the potential to be 'more violent' than Tren de Aragua and target rural America, according to an expert. Members of the Venezuelan-based gang have formed the 'Anti-Tren' gang, which federal authorities say is made up almost exclusively of former members of Tren de Aragua. In a newly unsealed April federal indictment, prosecutors accused 21 men of running drug and prostitution rings in New York City. According to the indictment, members of Anti-Tren 'protect their power and territory through various criminal acts, which includes violence towards members of Tren de Aragua. Advertisement 'Preserving and protecting the power and territory of Anti-Tren and its members and associates through acts involving murder, assault, other acts of violence, and threats of violence, including acts of violence and threats of violence directed at members and associates of Tren de Aragua,' the indictment states. Members of Anti-Tren are also enriched through illegal smuggling, which includes young Venezuelan women, sex trafficking of young women, drug trafficking and armed robberies, federal officials allege. Alleged gang members in custody at El Salvador's Terrorism Confinement Center on April 4, 2025. REUTERS/Jose Cabezas Robert Charles, assistant secretary of state at the US State Department's Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs from October 2003 to March 2005 and Maine gubernatorial candidate, told Fox News Digital he thinks the Anti-Tren group has the potential to become more violent than Tren de Aragua. Advertisement 'I've read some of the public accounts that suggest that this offshoot group is trying to distinguish itself by being more violent,' Charles said. 'With MS-13, they had various tests and things that they went through, and there were offshoots there that became more violent than the original group.' Charles said gangs like Anti-Tren attempt to dominate an area geographically and one of the ways they accomplish that is through violence and intimidation. Experts are warning Americans about a new gang called 'Anti Tren' formed by ex-members of Tren de Aragua. via REUTERS 'They are also doing violence in an environment which they're taking advantage of people. They're taking advantage of the homeless, they're taking advantage of rural America,' Charles said of Anti-Tren. Advertisement Charles said gangs like Anti-Tren are targeting rural parts of America because that's where they can 'maximize their gain' with little risk. 'We don't have the infrastructure in a very rural state to put patrols up through the northern part of the state and, frankly, to even keep drugs from coming in and the gangs from coming here,' Charles said of his state, Maine. 'Criminals are bad guys, but they are not stupid. And so what they look for is they look for opportunities to maximize their gain with the least possible risk.' Charles said he thinks the group will be eager to get into fights with Tren de Aragua, which is why authorities need to work fast to quash the group. 'I think right now their numbers are relatively modest,' Charles said. 'If you look away from it, if you pretend that it's not important, if you appease it instead of deterring it, then absolutely it will grow. That's just the nature of crime.' The Anti-Tren gang has a presence that expands beyond New York City. In September 2024, a Texas woman was robbed at gunpoint, pistol-whipped and tied up in her Dallas-area home located in the ritzy neighborhood of Bluffview, where the average home value is $880,000, according to Zillow. The robbery happened around 10 p.m. on Sept. 21, 2024, after the woman had just returned home from dinner. Advertisement The men involved in the incident allegedly targeted the woman in her driveway, forced her into her home, then tied her up at gunpoint, according to records obtained by Fox News. The men involved allegedly threatened to cut her fingers off. Using Google Translate to communicate with the victim, the suspects left the house with $75,000 worth of jewelry, a Ferragamo handbag, a Judith Leiber handbag, a Gucci purse, coins from a box inside the house and the victim's phone. Documents obtained by Fox News at the time indicated that Manuel Hernandez-Hernandez, one of the men arrested, said the other men were part of the Anti-Tren gang, something the Dallas Police Department didn't comment on. Fox News Digital's Audrey Conklin contributed to this report.
Yahoo
13-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Emerging Venezuelan gang 'more violent' than Tren de Aragua targets rural America, expert warns
An emerging Venezuelan gang has the potential to be "more violent" than Tren de Aragua and target rural America, according to an expert. Members of the Venezuelan-based gang have formed the "Anti-Tren" gang, which federal authorities say is made up almost exclusively of former members of Tren de Aragua. In a newly unsealed April federal indictment, prosecutors accused 21 men of running drug and prostitution rings in New York City. According to the indictment, members of Anti-Tren "protect their power and territory through various criminal acts, which includes violence towards members of Tren de Aragua. "Preserving and protecting the power and territory of Anti-Tren and its members and associates through acts involving murder, assault, other acts of violence, and threats of violence, including acts of violence and threats of violence directed at members and associates of Tren de Aragua," the indictment states. Texas Woman Robbed, Pistol-whipped In Ritzy Dallas Area By Illegal Venezuelan Migrants With Gang Ties: Report Members of Anti-Tren are also enriched through illegal smuggling, which includes young Venezuelan women, sex trafficking of young women, drug trafficking and armed robberies, federal officials allege. Read On The Fox News App Robert Charles, assistant secretary of state at the U.S. State Department's Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs from October 2003 to March 2005 and Maine gubernatorial candidate, told Fox News Digital he thinks the Anti-Tren group has the potential to become more violent than Tren de Aragua. "I've read some of the public accounts that suggest that this offshoot group is trying to distinguish itself by being more violent," Charles said. "With MS-13, they had various tests and things that they went through, and there were offshoots there that became more violent than the original group." Charles said gangs like Anti-Tren attempt to dominate an area geographically and one of the ways they accomplish that is through violence and intimidation. 11 Alleged Teen Tren De Aragua Gang Members Attack Nypd Officers: Police "They are also doing violence in an environment which they're taking advantage of people. They're taking advantage of the homeless, they're taking advantage of rural America," Charles said of Anti-Tren. Charles said gangs like Anti-Tren are targeting rural parts of America because that's where they can "maximize their gain" with little risk. "We don't have the infrastructure in a very rural state to put patrols up through the northern part of the state and, frankly, to even keep drugs from coming in and the gangs from coming here," Charles said of his state, Maine. "Criminals are bad guys, but they are not stupid. And so what they look for is they look for opportunities to maximize their gain with the least possible risk." Charles said he thinks the group will be eager to get into fights with Tren de Aragua, which is why authorities need to work fast to quash the group. "I think right now their numbers are relatively modest," Charles said. "If you look away from it, if you pretend that it's not important, if you appease it instead of deterring it, then absolutely it will grow. That's just the nature of crime." The Anti-Tren gang has a presence that expands beyond New York City. In September 2024, a Texas woman was robbed at gunpoint, pistol-whipped and tied up in her Dallas-area home located in the ritzy neighborhood of Bluffview, where the average home value is $880,000, according to Zillow. The robbery happened around 10 p.m. on Sept. 21, 2024, after the woman had just returned home from dinner. The men involved in the incident allegedly targeted the woman in her driveway, forced her into her home, then tied her up at gunpoint, according to records obtained by Fox News. The men involved allegedly threatened to cut her fingers off. Using Google Translate to communicate with the victim, the suspects left the house with $75,000 worth of jewelry, a Ferragamo handbag, a Judith Leiber handbag, a Gucci purse, coins from a box inside the house and the victim's phone. Documents obtained by Fox News at the time indicated that Manuel Hernandez-Hernandez, one of the men arrested, said the other men were part of the Anti-Tren gang, something the Dallas Police Department didn't comment on. Fox News Digital's Audrey Conklin contributed to this article source: Emerging Venezuelan gang 'more violent' than Tren de Aragua targets rural America, expert warns
Daily Mail
06-05-2025
- Politics
- Daily Mail
Meet the terrifying new migrant super gang threatening to unleash terror and chaos across America
The most feared gang in the U.S., Tren de Aragua, has spawned a rival... with the new group threatening to unleash double the terror and chaos across America. Born out of Tren de Aragua (TdA), Anti-Tren is a competitor that mirrors the same criminal activities - and has been named in a federal indictment for the first time ever. Federal prosecutors charged 21 men for being Anti-Tren members and running drug and prostitution rings in the New York City area in charges made public in April. 'Anti-Tren is a criminal organization almost exclusively comprised of former members and associates of TdA,' the government revealed. Just like TdA started in a Venezuela prison, Anti-Tren's members also originated in South America, operating for years there before they crossed the U.S.-Mexico border during the Biden years. 'You have to understand, this Anti-Tren movement is not originally from the United States- this is a South American thing,' a federal law enforcement source who spoke on condition of anonymity told 'This is Chile, Peru, Colombia, Venezuela. That's where it really is originating.' After getting started in Venezuela, TdA expanded across the South American continent, looking for new sources of revenue and following other Venezuelans who were fleeing their country's dictator, Nicolas Maduro. 'Anti-Tren is not necessarily a group. Anti-Tren constitutes a bunch of street gangs that are completely the rivals. They hate Tren de Aragua, but Anti-Tren is kind of the umbrella,' the federal official explained. 'One of the groups is called 'Los Orientals. They're very big in Colombia, Venezuela, Peru, and some in Chile. There's a very big presence down there.' Anti-Tren followed TdA's spread, absorbing criminals in some of the new countries they were in, like Peru, were local thugs joined their ranks. TdA crossed into the US in 2022, camouflaging themselves among the asylum-seekers from their homeland who largely fueled the border crisis in the last four years, when over a million Venezuelans were allowed into the US to seek refuge. was the first news organization in the US to report on Tren de Aragua coming to the U.S. It's possible Anti-Tren crossed into the U.S. around the same time or maybe even beat TdA here, cops believe. Like their nemesis, Anti-Tren leeched itself to their law-abiding countrymen so they could continue to exploit them once they arrived in big cities, like New York, Dallas and Denver. In Aurora, Colorado, TdA took over apartment complexes, charging innocent migrants 'rent' or beating up anyone who refused to pay. Both mobs used Manhattan's once grand Roosevelt Hotel turned migrant shelter as a home base to break the law. 'If you look at New York City at the Roosevelt Hotel, there was a big Anti-Tren movement at the Roosevelt Hotel before TdA really locked their teeth into that place because the Venezuelans were there first and then TdA came in secondary,' a law enforcement source added. Both groups smuggled migrants into the US, preying on poor women and underage girls desperate for passage into America but with no money to get here. In exchange for their bodies, Anti-Tren offered to sneak the women into the US. Once here, the women and girls had to work offthe debt by making money for the gangs through prostitution, federal prosecutors said in court charging documents. These women and girls are called 'multadas,' Spanish for 'owning a fine.' Both Anti-Tren and TdA made sure the multadas kept their end of the deal by threatening to kill 'multadas' and their families, assaulting 'multadas,' shooting or killing 'multadas,' and chasing down and kidnapping 'multadas' who tried to run away. Operating in the Bronx, Queens and New Jersey, the mobs trafficked 'tusi' or 'pink cocaine'- the drug that become the calling card of TdA. Anti-Tren is also accused of taking part in murders, assaults and armed robberies to maintain power but also 'to retaliate against rival organizations, including Tren de Aragua,' according to the feds. Federal law enforcement source believe there could be between 3,000-5,000 TdA members in the US. Anti-Tren, whose presence in the US is not believed to be as significant as TdA's, has also been linked to crimes in other TdA strongholds. A home invasion in Dallas, Texas first believed to be the work of TdA was later blamed on Anti-Tren. One of four Venezuelan men involved in the pistol-whipping of a woman in a high-end neighborhood told the cops his three accomplices were members of Anti-Tren, reported the local Fox station. On Sept. 21, four armed men went to the home of victim in an exclusive neighborhood, ambushing the female home owner while she was in her garage. After beating her with a gun, they forced their way into the her house. Once inside, they tied her up and used the Google Translate app to issue a dark warning. They demanded she turn over her valuables or they would cut her fingers off, the victim told police. The men made off with $75,000, a Gucci purse, the victim's phone and several coins from a wooden box. Manuel Hernandez-Hernandez, 28, was the first arrested for the home invasion. He illegally entered the country near El Paso in March without being inspected, admitted, or paroled by an immigration officer, Immigration and Customs Enforcement told Hernandez-Hernandez told Dallas police he knew the other men from the apartment complex where they lived in near-by Irving, Texas. He was paid $150 for his role in the robbery, the Dallas station reported. The other three men were later arrested after a SWAT stand off in near-by Irving. Three other Venezuelans, Yean Brayhan Torrealba-Sanabria, 20; Carlos Alberto Martinez-Silva, 34; and Wilmer Jesus Colmenares-Gonzalez, 27; were taken into custody and charged with aggravated robbery.
Daily Mail
05-05-2025
- Daily Mail
EXCLUSIVE The terrifying NEW migrant super gang threatening to unleash terror and chaos across America
The most feared gang in the US, Tren de Aragua, has spawned a rival... with the new group threatening to unleash double the terror and chaos across America. Born out of Tren de Aragua (TdA), Anti-Tren is a competitor that mirrors the same criminal activities - and has been named in a federal indictment for the first time ever. Federal prosecutors charged 21 men for being Anti-Tren members and running drug and prostitution rings in the New York City area in a federal indictment made public in April. 'Anti-Tren is a criminal organization almost exclusively comprised of former members and associates of TdA,' the government revealed. Just like TdA started in a Venezuela prison, Anti-Tren's members also originated in South America, operating for years there before they crossed the US-Mexico border during the Biden years. 'You have to understand, this Anti-Tren movement is not originally from the United States- this is a South American thing,' a federal law enforcement source who spoke on condition of anonymity told 'This is Chile, Peru, Colombia, Venezuela. That's where it really is originating.' After getting started in Venezuela, TdA expanded across the South American continent, looking for new sources of revenue and following other Venezuelans who were fleeing their country's dictator, Nicolas Maduro. Carlos Alberto Martinez-Silva, 34,(left) and Manuel Hernandez-Hernandez, 28, a Venezuelan man (right) accused in taking part in a violent home invasion where the victim was threatened with having her fingers cut off if she did not comply Two Anti-Tren members on a motorcycle open fire on a bus on the streets of Lima, Peru in recent days, according to South American media 24 Horas 'Anti-Tren is not necessarily a group. Anti-Tren constitutes a bunch of street gangs that are completely the rivals. They hate Tren de Aragua, but Anti-Tren is kind of the umbrella,' the federal official explained. 'One of the groups is called 'Los Orientals. They're very big in Colombia, Venezuela, Peru, and some in Chile. There's a very big presence down there.' Anti-Tren followed TdA's spread, absorbing criminals in some of the new countries they were in, like Peru, were local thugs joined their ranks. TdA crossed into the US in 2022, camouflaging themselves among the asylum-seekers from their homeland who largely fueled the border crisis in the last four years, when over a million Venezuelans were allowed into the US to seek refuge. was the first news organization in the US to report on Tren de Aragua coming to the US. It's possible Anti-Tren crossed into the US around the same time or maybe even beat TdA here, cops believe. Like their nemesis, Anti-Tren leeched itself to their law-abiding countrymen so they could continue to exploit them once they arrived in big cities, like New York, Dallas and Denver. In Aurora, Colorado, TdA took over apartment complexes, charging innocent migrants 'rent' or beating up anyone who refused to pay. Both mobs used Manhattan's once grand Roosevelt Hotel turned migrant shelter as a home base to break the law. 'If you look at New York City at the Roosevelt Hotel, there was a big Anti-Tren movement at the Roosevelt Hotel before TdA really locked their teeth into that place because the Venezuelans were there first and then TdA came in secondary,' a law enforcement source added. Both groups smuggled migrants into the US, preying on poor women and underage girls desperate for passage into America but with no money to get here. In exchange for their bodies, Anti-Tren offered to sneak the women into the US. Once here, the women and girls had to work offthe debt by making money for the gangs through prostitution, federal prosecutors said in court charging documents. These women and girls are called 'multadas,' Spanish for 'owning a fine.' Both Anti-Tren and TdA made sure the multadas kept their end of the deal by threatening to kill 'multadas' and their families, assaulting 'multadas,' shooting or killing 'multadas,' and chasing down and kidnapping 'multadas' who tried to run away. Operating in the Bronx, Queens and New Jersey, the mobs trafficked 'tusi' or 'pink cocaine'- the drug that become the calling card of TdA. Anti-Tren is also accused of taking part in murders, assaults and armed robberies to maintain power but also 'to retaliate against rival organizations, including Tren de Aragua,' according to the feds. Federal law enforcement source believe there could be between 3,000-5,000 TdA members in the US. Anti-Tren, whose presence in the US is not believed to be as significant as TdA's, has also been linked to crimes in other TdA strongholds. A home invasion in Dallas, Texas first believed to be the work of TdA was later blamed on Anti-Tren. One of four Venezuelan men involved in the pistol-whipping of a woman in a high-end neighborhood told the cops his three accomplices were members of Anti-Tren, reported the local Fox station. On Sept. 21, four armed men went to the home of victim in an exclusive neighborhood, ambushing the female home owner while she was in her garage. After beating her with a gun, they forced their way into the her house. Once inside, they tied her up and used the Google Translate app to issue a dark warning. They demanded she turn over her valuables or they would cut her fingers off, the victim told police. The men made off with $75,000, a Gucci purse, the victim's phone and several coins from a wooden box. Manuel Hernandez-Hernandez, 28, was the first arrested for the home invasion. He illegally entered the country near El Paso in March without being inspected, admitted, or paroled by an immigration officer, Immigration and Customs Enforcement told Hernandez-Hernandez told Dallas police he knew the other men from the apartment complex where they lived in near-by Irving, Texas. He was paid $150 for his role in the robbery, the Dallas station reported. The other three men were later arrested after a SWAT stand off in near-by Irving. Three other Venezuelans, Yean Brayhan Torrealba-Sanabria, 20; Carlos Alberto Martinez-Silva, 34; and Wilmer Jesus Colmenares-Gonzalez, 27; were taken into custody and charged with aggravated robbery.
Daily Mail
22-04-2025
- Daily Mail
Ominous NEW migrant gang emerges in America's biggest city as dozens of members are arrested
Disillusioned gangsters have splintered from Tren du Aragua to form an 'Anti-Tren' alliance terrorizing the streets of New York City. In a shocking revelation on Tuesday, authorities said a targeted effort to crack down on the Tren du Aragua criminal enterprise in the city actually yielded unexpected results. A total of 27 people were indicted on sweeping charges including racketeering, sex trafficking, drug, and firearms charges - but just six are current members of the feared Venezuelan gang. The remainder - 21 people - are instead linked to a new 'splinter' gang who refer to themselves as 'Anti-Tren.' Membership is primarily comprised of former Tren du Aragua gangsters who have become disenfranchised or ostracized from the original group. But authorities say their actions are equally as chilling as the original gang, which President Trump designated as a terror cell upon his return to the White House. In an indictment seen by prosecutors allege the Anti-Tren gang 'preserved and protected their power and territory' through 'acts of murder... and threats of violence.' These gangsters, like their counterparts, are accused of smuggling young women from Venezuela into the United States for the sole purpose of subjecting them to sex trafficking. These women, referred to among the group as 'multadas' - which is the feminine variation of the Spanish word 'multar', which translates to being 'given a ticket' or 'fined' - are subjected to immense cruelty by gang members, authorities allege. Women are told they must engage in sex work to pay off supposed debts, and gang members threaten to kill both them and their families if they attempt to flee or seek help. According to the indictment, these women are 'pistol whipped', sometimes shot, killed or raped, and tracked down and kidnapped if they do escape. Oftentimes, their debt only increases as their work - which usually takes place in the Bronx - continues. Group members are also accused of selling drugs on the street and conducting armed robberies. The indictment states that one accused member 'attempted to bite law enforcement officers executing a premises search warrant' to prevent the officer from accessing his cellphone. Trump's border czar Tom Homan issued a stark warning to the gangsters on Tuesday, telling them: '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.' He also hit out at a lawsuit attempting to block Mayor Eric Adams from giving ICE agents to the notorious Rikers Island. Of the 27 gangsters named in the indictment, 21 were already in prison and five were picked up on the streets. '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,' he 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.' Mayor Adams also addressed the efforts, asking: 'Whose side are you on?' 'Are you on the side of those who are carrying these illegal guns, wreaking havoc, sex trafficking, 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.' Attorney General Pam Bondi hailed the indictment as a huge success, noting: '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.'
