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yesterday

U.S. Sanctions Six Tren de Aragua Leaders, Freezes Their U.S. Assets

U.S. officials also increased bounty offers on top commanders to intensify pressure on the gang’s transnational network.

A Department of the Treasury sign is displayed outside the Denver Mint, a branch of the United States Mint on March 20, 2025 in Denver, Colorado. INSET: Hector Rusthenford Guerrero Flores (a.k.a. “Niño Guerrero”) is the notorious head of Tren de Aragua.
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A Tren de Aragua graffiti sticker is seen on a steel beam, as the Trump administration deported more than 200 Venezuelans, alleged members of the Venezuelan gang, to El Salvador over the weekend, in the Elmhurst neighborhood of the borough of Queens in New York City, U.S., March 17, 2025. REUTERS/Shannon Stapleton/File Photo
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Overview

  • The Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control designated Hector Rusthenford Guerrero Flores and five senior affiliates, blocking all properties and interests in the United States under their control.
  • The sanctions require U.S. persons to report and freeze any assets of the designated individuals and any entities they own at least 50 percent.
  • The State Department raised its reward offer to $5 million for Guerrero’s arrest and $4 million for co-founder Yohan Jose Romero as part of a reinforced bounty program.
  • The action marks the latest phase in a multiagency campaign, following RICO and terrorism indictments and FBI Most Wanted listings earlier this year.
  • U.S. officials say Tren de Aragua has evolved from a Venezuelan prison gang into a hemispheric criminal-terror network specializing in drug trafficking, human smuggling, extortion and money laundering.