The Texas Department of Public Safety announced on Tuesday its agents had arrested a human smuggler who apparently not only turned out to be a member of Tren de Aragua, but who had been released by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement days earlier after being arrested during a different alleged smuggling attempt.

"As part of Operation Lone Star (OLS), DPS arrested a human smuggling scout wearing an ICE Tracking Watch during a traffic stop in El Paso. The scout, Maikel Diaz-Guerra, 24, of Venezuela, is a confirmed Tren de Aragua gang member and had been arrested only a few days prior for another smuggling attempt. He was just released by ICE," Texas DPS wrote.

"Guerra was serving as the lookout for the other driver involved — 17-year-old Gildardo Perez III. Inside his vehicle, DPS found three illegal immigrants concealed in the rear seat. Guerra and Perez were booked into jail for smuggling of persons," the agency added.

'Tren de Aragua now has members in cities like Chicago, New York City, and Denver.'

Tren de Aragua is a violent gang originally from Venezuela that spread across Latin America during the mass exodus in the 2010s. As Venezuelans took advantage of the United States' border crisis under the Biden-Harris administration, gang members have had an easy time infiltrating the southern border. Tren de Aragua now has members in cities like Chicago, New York City, and Denver. Members have quickly established themselves in the criminal underworld and the migrant shelters in sanctuary cities.

A recent concerning development with Tren de Aragua is that the intelligence community issued a nationwide alert to law enforcement across the country to warn that the leaders of the criminal organization have officially given their members the "green light" to attack police officers.

After the threat from Tren de Aragua became undeniable, the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control sanctioned the gang last month.

“Today’s designation of Tren de Aragua as a significant Transnational Criminal Organization underscores the escalating threat it poses to American communities,” said Under Secretary for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence Brian Nelson. “As part of the Biden-Harris Administration’s efforts to target Transnational Criminal Organizations, we will deploy all tools and authorities against organizations like Tren de Aragua that prey on vulnerable populations to generate revenue, engage in a range of criminal activities across borders, and abuse the U.S. financial system."

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