Florida Sen. Marco Rubio and Rep. Maria Elvira Salazar on Thursday urged President Joe Biden to formally designate Tren de Aragua, a violent Venezuelan street gang that has expanded to the United States, as a transnational criminal organization.
In a letter addressed to Biden, the lawmakers wrote that the designation would "effectively mobilize national awareness" and deploy resources to help curb escalating crime and violence in the U.S.
"How many more innocent victims will have to suffer before we fully recognize and address the grave threat Tren de Aragua gang members cause to the peace, stability, and the national security of our nation?" the letter stated.
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Twenty-one Republican senators and representatives — including Sen. Rick Scott and South Florida Reps. Carlos Gimenez and Mario Diaz-Balart — have also signed the letter.
Tren de Aragua, or Aragua Train in English, originated from a prison in Venezuela and has since expanded throughout the United States and Central and South America, primarily Colombia, Chile, Ecuador and Peru. The organization partakes in a variety of crimes, including murder, drug and human trafficking, sex crimes, extortion and more.
"We cannot afford to underestimate the devastating damage posed by Tren de Aragua. Failure to designate Tren de Aragua as a TCO will only embolden its expansion, leading to heightened violence and criminality within the United States," Rubio and Salazar's letter stated. "We cannot permit our cities to become battlegrounds for such organizations, nor can we allow our citizens to suffer at their hands."
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The plea comes at the heels of a second arrest in the kidnapping and murder of a Doral man in November 2023. The suspects, who also ransacked Jose Luis Sanchez-Valera's apartment, had mentioned they were a part of Tren de Aragua.
