Texas Border Businesses
AUSTIN – Governor Greg Abbott announced today at a press conference in Houston that Texas is launching a comprehensive statewide operation to aggressively target the dangerous Venezuelan gang, Tren de Aragua (TdA), to disrupt their criminal operations and cut off their foothold in the state. Speaking at the Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS) Southeast Texas Regional Headquarters, the Governor designated TdA a Foreign Terrorist Organization and directed DPS to elevate it to a Tier 1 gang and to form TdA Strike Teams to identify and arrest TdA gang members.
“The recent advance and expansion of the violent Venezuelan gang, Tren de Aragua, is a dangerous and deadly challenge facing our state and our nation,” said Governor Abbott. “Our number one concern is the safety and security of all Texans. To address this immediate threat, I have ordered the Texas Department of Public Safety to launch a statewide operation directly targeting Tren de Aragua to disrupt and disrupt their criminal operations. I will also officially designate Tren de Aragua as a Foreign Terrorist Organization. Our goal is to protect Texas from the gang’s growing threat. We will not allow them to use Texas as a base of operations to terrorize our citizens. They are being targeted and we are going after them. Texas is the wrong state for them to try to do business.”
Also attending the press conference with the governor were Texas State Police Chief Steve McCraw, Texas Border Patrol Commissioner Mike Banks and Chris Cabrera, vice president of the National Border Patrol Council.
The full transcript of today’s press conference can be viewed here.
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“Tren de Aragua gangs are like cockroaches,” said DPS Director McCraw. “They multiply quickly. Small incursions into communities can become epidemic if not aggressively pursued. These Venezuelan thugs are very combative, violent and certainly adaptable. They are always involved in situations that start with human trafficking first. Then they get involved in extortion, kidnapping, rape, assault and sex trafficking of migrants. Governor Abbott has made it clear that he will never allow these gangs to gain a foothold in Texas.”
“This gang isn’t like your traditional MS-13, where they have these crazy tattoos all over their faces and you can see them coming from a mile away,” said Cabrera, vice president of the National Border Patrol Council. “They fly under the radar. As federal agents, we have no way to vet these people other than the honor system. You give them a name and they can’t check it against a database in Venezuela. It’s not just rampant in Colorado and New York, it’s rampant in Michigan, Florida, Texas, everywhere. If people don’t wake up and know what it is, this country is in trouble.”
“Let me be clear: the Tren de Aragua problem in Texas and the rest of the United States is a direct result of our open border policy,” said Border Control Director Banks. “It’s not surprising that we have a problem with illegal criminal organizations in the United States. Thankfully, we are addressing the problem. We have a strong Legislature and have enacted many laws signed by the Governor that are going after Tren de Aragua. I want to thank the Governor for having the moral courage to continue this fight and for doing all he can to protect Texas and the rest of the United States.”
Governor Abbott outlined background information on TdA during his press conference, noting that as an extreme version of the violent MS-13 gang, TdA began as a Venezuelan prison gang and then expanded into an international crime organization that controls the international flow of immigrants from South America through Mexico to the U.S. The Governor noted that the gang has a history of shipping large numbers of military-age Venezuelan men to other countries and establishing bases of operations in those countries to commit violent crimes.
Additionally, Governor Abbott formally signed a proclamation designating TdA as a Foreign Terrorist Organization. This designation allows Texas to use the courts to curb the gang’s criminal activities, use civil asset forfeiture to seize their property, and increase criminal penalties during prosecution. The Governor also directed the Texas State Police to form a TdA Strike Team to aggressively target TdA’s criminal activities in Texas. This Strike Team will include DPS assets and hundreds of personnel, including DPS Highway Patrol troopers, special agents, and Texas Rangers. They will work in conjunction with the Texas Anti-Gang (TAG) Center and law enforcement agencies to focus resources on areas where TdA activity is known to be occurring.
At the Governor’s direction, DPS is elevating TdA to a Tier 1 gang, ensuring Texas has the resources it needs to disrupt gang criminal activity in the state. With this new elevation, DPS will work in conjunction with federal and local partners through state-funded TAG Centers in El Paso, Houston, Irving, Laredo, Lubbock, McAllen, San Antonio, Tyler and Waco. TAG Centers are home to federal, state and local law enforcement agencies who work together to identify, target, investigate, subdue and prosecute violent offenders across the state.
Last year, Governor Abbott signed Senate Bill 1900, which defines international drug cartels and criminal organizations as foreign terrorist organizations in Texas and increases penalties for distributing illegal drugs and operating trafficking dens. The legislation adds foreign terrorist organizations to the current intelligence database and allows state and local authorities to file public tort claims against them. The Governor also signed Senate Bill 4 from Special Session #3, which mandates a minimum of 10 years in prison for human smuggling. Passed with bipartisan support, the legislation increased criminal penalties for operating a trafficking den, requiring a minimum of 5 years in prison.
The Governor’s proclamation designating TdA as a Foreign Terrorist Organization can be read here.
