Tren de Aragua spreads to one of America’s most remote states after member of brutal gang is busted there

The Venezuelan prison gang Tren de Aragua has now made its mark in 17 US states after at least one member was arrested in one of the smallest and most remote states in the US.

Local cops in West Fargo, North Dakota, arrested Dallas-based suspected gang member Henry Theis, 25, early last month, according to local news reports.

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Theis later admitted to his role in a group hacking ATMs with a virus in order to steal cash. He was quickly taken into custody and charged with felony theft.

The ruthless foreign gang has already established footholds in the following states, according to a leaked Homeland Security memo and previous reporting by The Post:

  • California
  • Colorado
  • Florida
  • Georgia
  • Illinois
  • Louisiana
  • Nevada
  • New Jersey
  • New York
  • North Carolina
  • Tennessee
  • Texas
  • Wisconsin
  • Virginia
  • Montana
  • Wyoming

West Fargo Police Chief Pete Neilsen confirmed that the Venezuelan national is in the US illegally, slamming the feds for not taking charge of the case.

“When you have someone that comes into your community and steals $150,000, that’s an illegal alien, and then leaves. One would think that the feds would step in and say, ‘You know, I’m going to take this one,’” said Nielsen.

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Police in West Fargo also arrested two other suspects, Jefferson Rodriguez-Quintero and Ryber Sanchez, who are believed to connected to the heist near Watertown, South Dakota, and found to have almost $100,000 in cash in their vehicle.

Tren de Aragua members have mainly arrived into the US via the southern border, where they’ve embedded in the massive waves of migrants crossing under the Biden administration and posed as asylum seekers to more easily get released by federal authorities.

In Theis’ case, the gangbanger crossed the border illegally into El Paso, Texas, last year, when he was quickly released with a future court date by border agents because the feds lacked space to further detain him, Homeland Security sources told The Post.

In August 2024, he was arrested in Lewisville, Texas, for a DWI. However, it’s not clear when or why he was released from custody and not turned over the ICE, according to sources.

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ICE later lodged a detainer with the local jail and took Theis into custody, sources said.

The gang’s members are allegedly responsible for the shooting and beatings of NYPD cops, the gruesome murder of Georgia nursing student Laken Riley and the brutal rape and killing of 12-year-old Houston girl Jocelyn Nungaray.

The gang has also taken over apartment complexes in Aurora, Colorado, run gun smuggling rings in New York City migrant shelters, and established sex trafficking rings in multiple states.

The incoming Trump administration will now inherit the issue.

Trump’s selection for border czar, Tom Homan, has promised mass deportations, starting with criminals who entered the country illegally.

* Original Article:

https://nypost.com/2024/12/09/us-news/tren-de-aragua-found-in-north-dakota-after-member-arrested-in-atm-heist/?utm_source=smartnews&utm_campaign=nypost&utm_medium=referral