By Fatima Hussein
Associated Press
WASHINGTON — The U.S. imposed sanctions Wednesday on alleged affiliates of the Tren de Aragua gang and increased the reward to as much as $5 million for information leading to the arrest or conviction of one of the leaders of the criminal group now designated as a foreign terrorist organization.
The actions come as President Donald Trump’s administration has accused the gang, which originated in a prison in Venezuela, of being at the root of violence and the illegal drug trade in many U.S. cities. Tren de Aragua also has become a key reference point in military attacks against vessels suspected of drug trafficking in the Caribbean Sea and eastern Pacific Ocean as well as Trump’s crackdown on immigration.
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Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control levied sanctions Wednesday on Venezuelan entertainer Jimena Romina Araya Navarro, who is known as “Rosita,” on accusations of providing material support to Tren de Aragua by helping the head of the gang, Hector Rusthenford Guerrero Flores, escape from Tocorón prison in Venezuela in 2012.
Navarro, known as Rosita for her character on a Venezuelan comedy show, has been linked to Guerrero for years. Local media previously reported that Araya, also a showgirl, frequently performed in a prison where Guerrero was once held and Tren de Aragua was established.
Tren de Aragua controlled the prison for several years during which a nightclub, swimming pools, a lavish suite and more amenities were added to the facility.
The State Department also increased the reward for Giovanni Vicente Mosquera Serrano, who is the first Tren de Aragua member to appear on the FBI’s Ten Most Wanted List, after he was charged in January with international cocaine trafficking conspiracy. The previous award was up to $3 million.
After the U.S. designated the gang as a foreign terrorist organization in February, Mosquera Serrano was indicted in April on charges of providing material support, according to the State Department.
Trump has repeated his claim — contradicted by a declassified U.S. intelligence assessment — that Tren de Aragua is operating under Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro’s control.
“Under President Trump, barbaric terrorist cartels can no longer operate with impunity across our borders,” Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said in a news release. “At the direction of President Trump, we will continue to use every tool to cut off these terrorists from the U.S. and global financial system and keep American citizens safe.”
Jorge Rueda in Caracas, Venezuela contributed to this report.
