DOJ unseals 1st terrorism case against alleged Tren de Aragua member
Prosecutors have unsealed federal terrorism charges targeting an alleged "high-ranking" member of the Venezuelan Tren de Aragua gang who was arrested in Colombia late last month, the Justice Department announced Wednesday.
Jose Enrique Martinez Flores, also referred to as "Chuqui," is the first alleged TdA member to be charged with terrorism offenses since President Donald Trump's declaration designating the gang as a terrorist organization.
Charging documents describe Flores as a "high-ranking TdA leader" in Bogota, Colombia, who is alleged to have helped deliver approximately five kilos of cocaine for international distribution, which prosecutors said were "used to further TdA's criminal goals."
He was taken into custody in Colombia on March 31 pursuant to a U.S. arrest warrant, though the department was not immediately able to say when, or whether, he will ultimately be extradited to the U.S.
"TdA is not a street gang – it is a highly structured terrorist organization that put down roots in our country during the prior administration," Attorney General Pamela Bondi said in the DOJ's press release. "Today's charges represent an inflection point in how this Department of Justice will prosecute and ultimately dismantle this evil organization, which has destroyed American families and poisoned our communities."
Flores is charged with one count of conspiring to provide material support to TdA in the form of personnel (including himself) and services and one count of providing material support to TdA. The indictment also alleges one count of international drug distribution conspiracy based on his involvement in the distribution of five kilograms of cocaine or more, and two substantive counts of international drug distribution, according to the release.
If convicted, he faces a maximum penalty of life in prison and a $10 million fine, according to the Justice Department.
"TdA is a direct threat to our national security, to our communities, and to Americans," FBI Director Kash Patel said in the release. "Together with our law enforcement partners, the FBI continues in our pursuit to eliminate this violent terrorist organization from our streets, and today's announcement makes it clear that these criminals, especially the leaders of these cartels, have no place in our country."
Extraditing Flores to the U.S. to spend time behind bars, however, would seem to contradict arguments officials have made in court in recent weeks in defense of their rushed deportations of alleged TdA members to El Salvador under the Alien Enemies Act.
DOJ officials have argued that the presence of such alleged gang members could lead to more dangerous conditions in prisons, while dismissing criticisms that the men should have been afforded due process before they were sent to the notorious CECOT facility.
