U.S. Imposes Sanctions on Alleged Leader of Venezuelan Gang 'Tren de Aragua'

The U.S. Treasury Department has sanctioned Giovanni Vicente Mosquera Serrano, the alleged leader of Tren de Aragua (TDA), a Venezuelan criminal gang accused of involvement in drug trafficking, terrorism, and other crimes. The Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control issued the sanctions and confirmed that the Department of Justice has indicted Mosquera Serrano. Unsealed court documents reveal charges against him related to drug trafficking and terrorism. He has also been added to the FBI’s Ten Most Wanted list, with a $3 million reward offered for information leading to his arrest or conviction.

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent condemned Tren de Aragua under Mosquera Serrano’s leadership, accusing the group of terrorizing communities and facilitating the flow of illicit drugs into the United States. The sanctions are part of a broader campaign led by former President Donald Trump, targeting foreign criminal organizations, which his administration blamed for increasing crime in the U.S.

Earlier in the year, the Trump administration designated TDA and other Latin American gangs as “foreign terrorist organizations,” a classification usually reserved for politically motivated international terror groups. This designation allowed the administration to exercise emergency powers under various legal frameworks. One such law, the Alien Enemies Act of 1798—a rarely used wartime statute—was invoked by Trump to justify expedited deportations of alleged gang members.

The administration claimed that Tren de Aragua had connections with the Venezuelan government under President Nicolás Maduro and was collaborating with it to expand operations in the U.S. This assertion was used as a legal basis for the rapid deportation of more than 200 individuals to a maximum-security prison in El Salvador, where many remain detained.

However, this wave of deportations has been met with significant legal and public criticism. Human rights advocates argue that the process violated the due process rights of the immigrants, many of whom reportedly lacked criminal records. Some detainees were allegedly imprisoned based on their tattoos or clothing, leading to concerns about profiling and discrimination. The Department of Homeland Security has denied these claims.

Adding complexity to the situation, a memo from the Office of the Director of National Intelligence, dated April and reported by outlets like NPR and The New York Times, disputed the Trump administration’s claims of Venezuelan state collaboration with TDA. The memo stated that although Venezuela’s lenient law enforcement environment may have allowed TDA to operate, there is no clear evidence that the Maduro regime is directing or cooperating with the gang. In fact, it suggests the Venezuelan government likely views TDA as a threat rather than an ally.

In July of the previous year, the U.S. and Colombia jointly announced multimillion-dollar rewards for information leading to the capture of Mosquera Serrano and two other TDA leaders. During the same period, the Treasury Department officially labeled the gang as a transnational criminal organization. The group was accused of involvement in multiple crimes, including human smuggling, gender-based violence, money laundering, and drug trafficking.

Tren de Aragua’s rapid expansion has caused serious concerns throughout Latin America, where its activities have been linked to political assassinations and large-scale human trafficking operations. However, despite the alarming claims, experts maintain there is limited evidence to suggest the gang has significantly infiltrated the United States.