North Miami-Dade News

Representative María Elvira Salazar and Senator Marco Rubio, along with a group of their colleagues, have sent a letter to President Biden urging the formal designation of the violent Tren de Aragua gang as a "Transnational Criminal Organization."

In the letter, the legislators expressed their concerns about the Tren de Aragua gang, describing it as "an invading criminal army from a prison in Venezuela that has spread its brutality and chaos to cities and small towns in the United States." They warned that if left unchecked, the gang would unleash unprecedented terror, similar to the devastation it has already caused in communities across Central and South America.

"The breadth of operations of the Tren de Aragua encompasses murder, drug and human trafficking, sexual crimes, extortion, and kidnapping, among other brutalities," wrote the lawmakers.

Representative Salazar, as the Chair of the Western Hemisphere Subcommittee on the House Foreign Affairs Committee, has been a leading voice in the fight against gang violence and the promotion of economic security in the hemisphere. She has been actively advocating for the return to democracy in Venezuela and exposing the regime's collaboration with criminal elements to suppress democratic forces seeking to overthrow Maduro.

Joining Salazar and Rubio in the letter are several senators and representatives, including Bill Cassidy, Shelley Moore Capito, Chuck Grassley, Rick Scott, Tim Scott, John Cornyn, Chris Smith, Andy Ogles, Carlos Giménez, Tony Gonzales, Lance Gooden, Jenniffer González-Colón, Mike Waltz, Gus Bilirakis, Joe Wilson, Dan Crenshaw, Mario Díaz-Balart, C. Scott Franklin, Randy Weber, Jim Baird, and Anthony D'Esposito.

The legislators' call for the designation of the Tren de Aragua gang as a Transnational Criminal Organization underscores their commitment to combatting organized crime and ensuring the safety and security of communities in the United States and across the hemisphere.