More than a dozen law enforcement agencies participated in the Sunday morning operation in the area of San Pedro and Basse.
SAN ANTONIO — Federal authorities say 27 Tren de Aragua members were among the dozens and dozens detained in a massive law enforcement operation in San Antonio early Sunday morning.
Cocaine, three guns and about $35,000 in cash were also seized as part of the operation that saw more than 150 people suspected of being in the U.S. illegally being taken into custody in the area of San Pedro and Basse, officials with the Department of Homeland Security said. Fourteen agencies participated in the operation targeting an after-hours club, including DHS, Immigration and Customs Enforcement and the FBI.
DHS said the club was “known to be frequented” my members of the Tren de Aragua street gang, which is based out of Venezuela and has been a focal point of the Trump administration’s ramped-up immigration enforcement efforts in recent months.
“Under President Trump and Secretary Noem, DHS is dismantling criminal gangs and stopping dangerous drugs from pouring into American neighborhoods,” DHS Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin said in a release.
DHS so far has identified five of the 27 Tren de Aragua members:
- Jeison Javier Perez, previously convicted of larceny
- Yoibert Geraldo Caldera Pulido, previously accused of theft
- Brayann Ibraynn Morales-Rodriguez, accused of illegal entry after being deported
- Willy Yoel Arteaga-Tabares
- Roiberth Jesus Campos Duran
Two others arrested in the operation who have yet to be identified are under investigation for alleged human smuggling and money laundering; a third detainee was allegedly involved in drug trafficking.
Also among those arrested Sunday were Venezuela native Yormary Paola Aguilar Fuentes, who DHS said was previously convicted of conspiracy to commit aggravated assault with a weapon, and Marcelo Gomez-Gonzalez, a Mexican man who DHS said was previously convicted of smuggling migrants across the border.
Federal records obtained by KENS 5 on Tuesday identified two other Honduran men who were arrested Sunday and accused of being in the country illegally, but didn’t connect them to Tren de Aragua.
Tren de Aragua, which traces its roots to a Venezuelan prison, is not known for having a big role in global drug trafficking but for its involvement in contract killings, extortion and human smuggling.
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