US sanctions a Venezuela gang for spreading criminal activity across Latin America
MIAMI (AP) — The Biden administration on Thursday sanctioned Venezuela’s Tren de Aragua as a transnational criminal organization and offered a $12 million reward for the arrest of its leaders.
The gang is accused of carrying out kidnappings, extortion and other violent crimes on the backs of migrants spreading across Latin America and the United States.
“Tren de Aragua poses a deadly criminal threat across the region,” the U.S. Treasury Department said in a statement, adding that it often preys on vulnerable populations such as migrant women and girls for sex trafficking.
“When victims seek to escape this exploitation, Tren de Aragua members often kill them and publicize their deaths as a threat to others,” the statement added.