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The Venezuelan prison gang Tren de Aragua now has a presence in 17 U.S. states after at least one of its members was arrested in West Fargo, North Dakota, in November, the New York Post reports.
Henry Theis, 25, who was previously based in Dallas, was charged with felony theft after initially being pulled over for a broke taillight. The suspect was discovered to have more than $24,000 in cash he allegedly stole from a nearby bank, as well as two facemasks, black latex gloves, wires and a computer keyboard and later admitted to playing a role in the gang's hacking of ATMs with a virus order to steal cash.
Last month, the New York Post reported that Tren de Aragua expanded its territory to at least 16 U.S. states, which included areas accounting for half of the country's population, Homeland Security officials confirmed. An internal department intelligence memo warned officials of the gang's growing presence in Washington, D.C., Virginia, Montana and Wyoming after it already had already been present in California, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Louisiana, Nevada, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Tennessee, Texas and Wisconsin.
The gang has also reportedly increased its "violent tendencies" as it grows larger in different areas. Tren de Aragua's presence in D.C. and Virginia reportedly coincided with "increases in migrant populations" in both areas, according to the memo.
“As the population of Venezuelan nationals continues to increase, the potential for violent TdA migrants is highly probable,” the memo stated.
Three Tren de Aragua suspected members were arrested for a shoplifting incident in Fairfax County, Virginia, in August 2023, which found that one suspect had a fake Venezuelan ID and all three had signature gang tattoos. The gang is suspected to be targeting the D.C. area as its easy to travel to nearby Virginia suburbs to commit thefts, robberies, and assaults, the memo states.
Tren de Aragua members are reportedly increasingly engaged in "lower-level fraud and theft schemes," which includes sending stolen funds “back to South America as a means of financing additional criminal enterprises," according to the memo.