Gov. Greg Abbott announced a statewide plan to combat what he called the growing presence of Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua at a Houston press conference Monday. 

The Venezuelan prison gang, which has been involved in extortion, drug trafficking and migrant smuggling, has expanded to South America and the U.S. in recent years. In July, the U.S. Treasury Department sanctioned the gang as a transnational criminal organization. Republicans have pointed to a growing presence in Colorado as a failure of Biden’s border policy during this election season, although the scope of the gang’s U.S. presence has been questioned.

Abbott declared the group a tier 1 gang and a foreign terrorist organization. He said he will support Texas law enforcement to create a statewide database of Tren de Aragua members. 

“We will bring the full weight of the government against TDA,” Abbott said.

The announcement comes as immigration and border security has become a top campaign issue during the presidential elections. The murder of 12-year-old Jocelyn Nungaray has brought Houston to the forefront of the national conversation. Venezuelan migrants Franklin Peña and Johan Jose Martinez-Rangel are accused of her murder. 

Abbott cited the difficulties of identifying Tren de Aragua members because of a lack of cooperation with Venezuelan authorities. The U.S. and Venezuela have not had diplomatic relations since 2019. 

The governor did not specifically mention the Nungaray murder or link the suspects to Tren de Aragua. Authorities have been unable to determine their past criminal history.  

Venezuelans in Houston 

Venezuelans are the fastest growing immigrant population in Houston with about 54,000 people living in the area, according to a 2023 report by Migration Policy Institute.  Many come legally through a parole program launched by the Biden administration and say they are fleeing a years-long economic collapse and humanitarian crisis. The increased repression after July elections is only expected to further fuel the number of people leaving the country.

Priscilla Lugo, Policy and Communications Manager for the Texas Immigration Law Council, called the press conference’s rhetoric “alarming.”

“Venezuelan migrants who are fleeing instability, insecurity, and violence are coming to the United States to find safety and security and are not recreating the violence they sought to escape but instead are making our communities safer and our economies more prosperous,” Lugo said in a statement.

Tren de Aragua’s growing presence in Texas

Texas Department of Public Safety Director Steve McCraw, Texas Border Czar Mike Banks, and National Border Patrol Council Vice President Chris Cabrera joined Abbott at the announcement Monday. 

McCraw said that suspected members of Tren de Aragua have allegedly been involved in trafficking, kidnapping and extortion in Houston. He did not further elaborate on the crimes when asked about specifics. 

Banks blamed President Joe Biden’s open border policies for the gang’s alleged growing presence in Texas and the U.S. He said that the Venezuelan government has purposefully sent prisoners to the U.S., without citing a source for this claim.

Cabrera said that cities like Houston are the ones to see the impact of border policies.

“What people fail to realize is, working on the border, we see everything come through,” Cabrera said. “But it doesn’t affect us as much as it affects the rest of the United States, especially Houston.”

Former President Donald Trump has repeatedly blamed the Venezuelan government for releasing prisoners and sending them to the U.S. His campaign has not provided any evidence to support this claim. When recently pressed on this issue by a reporter, Trump advisor Stephen Miller did not provide further details. The New York Times previously debunked this claim.

A press release from Abbott’s office Friday said that Houston Police Department Chief Noe Diaz would attend Monday’s announcement. Diaz was not present at the press conference. 

Migrant victims

Abbott said the gang trafficks drugs, weapons and humans. He said that migrants are often victims of the gang. 

“We often see an outcry for help from migrants who are being trafficked, who are being sexually assaulted, pleading for somebody to help them and to do something about their attackers,” Abbott said.

McCraw said that DPS is working to ensure victims come forward. This includes making outreach available in Spanish.

“They have rights like any people do and certainly we want to know if there’s been a violation of law and they’re a victim of it,” McCraw said. 

Law enforcement and immigrant rights organizations have previously told the Houston Landing that they worry some of Texas’s laws to crack down on immigration could impact collaboration with law enforcement. If immigrants are afraid of being targeted for their immigration status, they may not want to come forward. 

Abbott said that immigrants’ fear of coming forward was not a concern he has seen to date in Texas. 

“We’re not going to allow them [TDA] to use Texas as a base of operations to terrorize our citizens,” Abbott said. 

Texas has ramped up its border and immigration enforcement under Abbott’s Operation Lone Star, launched in 2021. The state government has installed razor wire and buoys along the border and has increased prosecutions of human smuggling and trespassing charges. A new law being challenged in court could make it a state crime to cross into Texas illegally. 

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