Estimated read time: 6-7 minutes
- Utah officials confirm Tren de Aragua's presence in the state but say it isn't extensive.
- There have been dozen or so incidents involving the native Venezuelan gang, including in Millcreek and Herriman.
- Venezuelan community leaders urge vigilance in keeping the gang in check but, also emphasize most immigrants come seeking work and a better future.
SALT LAKE CITY — As Tren de Aragua, the Venezuelan criminal organization brought to the United States by immigrants, gets more attention nationwide, concern about the group is flaring in Utah.
Purported gang members have been linked to at least two alleged criminal incidents in Utah since September, in Herriman and Millcreek. Charging documents in the Millcreek case reference an alleged prostitution operation involving Tren de Aragua.
Utah law enforcement officials identified the gang's presence in the state last spring, Gov. Spencer Cox said late last month when announcing his intent to work with President-elect Donald Trump on tackling illegal immigration.
The organization, Cox said, poses "a growing threat" to Utah.
Still, Utah law enforcement officials are guarded in their public pronouncements about Tren de Aragua, also dubbed TdA, which has garnered headlines nationwide with arrests of purported members in connection with a range of violent crimes. The Utah Department of Public Safety's Statewide Information and Analysis Center said reports from local and federal law enforcement indicate Tren de Agua members are in the state and about a dozen incidents involving suspected members of the gang have been investigated.
"While TdA members are present nationally, local authorities believe their presence in Utah is not extensive. Utah's largest criminal gangs continue to be the Sureños, Norteños, Bloods and Crips," the DPS division said in a statement to KSL.com, referencing other national criminal organizations.
Representatives from some Utah law enforcement agencies did not respond to queries seeking comment or declined to comment, while others spoke about Tren de Aragua in general terms. Utah County Sheriff Mike Smith said "there is a presence" in Utah, citing the surge of activity and crossings at the U.S.-Mexico border, particularly late last year and early this year.
"Because of the open border, we know that we've been flooded with all sorts of problems into our nation and into our state, and we're dealing with them as they surface. It's hard to quantify what's here. We know (Tren de Aragua is) here, and we're trying to do the best we can, as it starts to surface, to handle it," he said.
Utah Rep. Candice Pierucci, a Republican from Herriman, said she's been working on legislation to confront "some of the challenges we face in my district as a result of failed border policies." She didn't delve into details but referenced Tren de Aragua.
"I am very aware of TdA and its presence in our area," she said. "This interim I've met with our law enforcement community, particularly the Salt Lake County Metro Gang Unit, to better understand this issue. I'm working with my colleagues on how we can crack down on gang violence, strengthen our laws to deter crime and keep our communities safe."
Heriman police spokesman Sgt. Greg Shaver said, despite growing concern, there's no indication Tren de Aragua is running amok in the city, nor any indication of turf wars. The incident in Herriman on Sept. 22 — actually two separate confrontations, one after the other — involved four supposed Tren de Aragua members ranging in age from 19 to 21, all of whom now facing charges.
"We don't have taggings. We don't have kids rolling around throwing colors and signs and things that you would associate with gang activity. We're not seeing that," Shaver said. Herriman officials learned of the gang affiliation from a West Jordan Police Department investigator, not from the suspects.
The four suspected gang members allegedly confronted three other people, physically assaulting two of them. Thereafter, according to charging papers, a car chase ensued, involving some of the suspected Tren de Aragua members in one car and acquaintances of the two assault victims in another. The cars crashed, came to a stop, and two of the alleged gang affiliates exited their vehicle and allegedly fired at the other car, injuring one of the people inside with a shrapnel wound to the shoulder.
News of the incident and the suspected Tren de Aragua connection have prompted alarm among some in Herriman, Shaver said, but he tried to assuage those worries. City residents see the reports "and they're freaking out," Shaver said, adding that "Herriman is a really good city and a great place to live. ... We're not seeing anything that's a direct involvement to any major gang in Herriman."
Following the incident in Millcreek on Oct. 31, three purported Tren de Aragua members face burglary and assault charges for allegedly breaking into a home and threatening the occupants at gunpoint. The charges say a female occupant of the home said one of the three suspects had forced her into prostitution when she first arrived in Utah.
The woman referenced an acquaintance she said was being held captive at a West Valley City hotel by one of the three suspects, which spurred a visit by police in that city to the alleged business. The woman at the West Valley City hotel, only identified in court documents as M.C., said the Tren de Aragua suspects in the Millcreek incident had previously assaulted her. She also said she and two others were working at the business as "escorts," according to charging papers.
"Officers asked M.C. if she was OK, at which point she started to cry," the charges state.
'We don't want Utah to become another New York'
Members of the Venezuelan community in Utah speak critically of Tren de Aragua, which started in the Venezuelan city of Aragua. The group is involved "in a multitude of organized crime activities," according to the Utah Department of Public Safety statement, including trafficking of drugs, human trafficking, sex and weapons, assault, homicide, migrant smuggling, money laundering and property crime.
Mayra Molina, head of the Venezuelan Alliance of Utah, an organization of Venezuelans in the state, said the gang has spread all over South America and to the United States. "They're in Florida. They're in Texas. They're in Chicago. They're in New York. And, apparently, there's some of them here," she said.
As she understands it, when gang members get into trouble with the law in larger U.S. locales, they move to smaller places like Utah. She doesn't welcome their arrival, though, and said leaders in the Venezuelan community have been spreading the word to others about the importance of contacting law enforcement to learn of possible Tren de Aragua members. "We don't want Utah to become another New York, or Chicago, or Colorado," she said.
Patricia Quiñonez, of Utahzolanos — an online business, news and social group focused on Utah's Venezuelan community — cautioned against stigmatizing all Venezuelans as criminals because of Tren de Aragua activity. "They want to lump everyone together, but it's not like that," she said.
Like most immigrants, the vast majority of Venezuelans coming to the United States do so looking for work and a better future for themselves and their families. She suspects members of the gang are among the more recent arrivals from Venezuela, "taking advantage of the lack of security controls" at the U.S.-Mexico border.
The Statewide Information and Analysis Center, for its part, advises using balance when contending with Tren de Aragua in Utah.
"There is no current indication that their presence will significantly increase criminal activity in the state. However, law enforcement needs the public to be aware of these trends and participate in gang prevention efforts," the organization's statement said. Like, Molina, it calls on the public to be vigilant and to report any criminal activity.
