Chicago cops train to identify Tren de Aragua while mayor vows to shield illegal aliens from deportation: Report



The vicious Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua has extended its reach in Chicago, Illinois, prompting the local police department to initiate training for its officers to identify the dangerous gang members.

Tren de Aragua has been linked to numerous crimes across the country, including retail theft and human trafficking.

'Tattoos are big with these guys.'

According to Chicago Police Department memos obtained by America First Legal and viewed by the New York Post, the gang has now expanded its criminal activity into dealing "pink cocaine," a mysterious illicit substance.

The memo read, "Drug of choice is Pink Cocaine which is a mixture of several drugs and can vary between different narcotics. E.g. Ecstasy, Amphetamines, LSD, or other synthetic drugs."

When recovering the substance, officers are advised to treat it similarly to fentanyl since "it is often used" as an ingredient.

A federal law enforcement source told the Post that the new drug sells for at least $100 per gram. Authorities are concerned about its growing popularity, especially considering there is no standard formula for it.

Drug Enforcement Administration special operations division chief Derek Maltz told the news outlet that it is "not like cocaine." He warned that TDA is "going to do everything they can to make money."

The CPD documents also revealed that officers are being trained on how to spot TDA-affiliated tattoos, which encompass a wide range of symbols, including doves, roses, owls, rifles, gas masks, trains, crowns, stars, pocket watches, the Michael Jordan logo, and Popeye the Sailor.

"Tattoos are big with these guys," the memo read. "They'll be seen dressed like rappers and wearing black & red jerseys like Bulls, Blackhawks or Jordan apparel."

While CPD ramps up training to combat TDA's presence in the city, Mayor Brandon Johnson (D) is doubling down on his commitment to shield illegal aliens from President-elect Donald Trump's mass deportation plans.

Chicago is a sanctuary city that prevents local law enforcement officers from cooperating with federal immigration agents.

Earlier this month, Johnson stated, "The president-elect, former President Trump, his threat is not just toward new arrivals and undocumented families. His threats are also against black families."

"We're going to stand up and protect undocumented individuals," he declared.

Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!

Why did Biden fly Laken Riley's murderer to Georgia?



Laken Riley was only 22 years old when she was brutally murdered by an illegal immigrant from Venezuela.

The nursing student had innocently gone for a jog on the University of Georgia campus in Athens, Georgia, where 26-year-old Jose Ibarra then decided to take her life.

Ibarra was found guilty on all counts Wednesday morning in the fast-moving trial.

The prosecutor explained to the jury that the immigrant had been walking around different apartment complexes essentially hunting for a woman to rape, when he saw Laken Riley jogging by herself on a Sunday morning.

“She fought so hard for her life, she fought so hard for her dignity, she was almost completely unclothed,” Allie Beth Stuckey of “Relatable” comments after listening to the prosecutor's opening statement.


“Because of how hard she fought, she wasn’t completely exposed, but when the police officer found her laying there with her skull crushed in by the rock that Ibarra allegedly picked up and hit her with, at least half of her body was completely naked because he tried and failed, thank the Lord, to rape her before murdering her,” Stuckey says.

Riley was reportedly wearing a smartwatch at the time, which revealed that her heart rate had spiked during the 17-minute attack.

Her attacker has been confirmed to be a member of Tren de Aragua, a dangerous Venezuelan gang that has infiltrated and plagued parts of America with extreme violence.

He had also been arrested by the NYPD a year after he entered the United States in August 2023, but not because he was here illegally. Rather, Ibarra was arrested because he committed the crime of acting in a manner to injure a child and had a motor vehicle license violation.

Now, it’s been revealed that Ibarra, along with other illegal immigrants, was granted a free humanitarian flight from New York to Georgia.

“So he was the beneficiary of Biden’s catch-and-release policy at the border. So he was detained when he tried to cross illegally in 2022, and then he was released into the interior of the United States per Biden’s policies, and then he was the beneficiary of a catch-and-release policy because of progressive soft-on-crime policies in New York,” Stuckey comments.

“And not only that, but he was actually given the gift, as a reward for the crimes that he had committed, he was given the gift of a free, taxpayer-funded flight from New York to Georgia, where he eventually killed Laken Riley,” she adds, disgusted.

Want more from Allie Beth Stuckey?

To enjoy more of Allie’s upbeat and in-depth coverage of culture, news, and theology from a Christian, conservative perspective, subscribe to BlazeTV — the largest multi-platform network of voices who love America, defend the Constitution, and live the American dream.

Laken Riley murder suspect confirmed to be part of brutal Venezuelan gang



Jose Ibarra, the suspected murderer of University of Georgia student Laken Riley, is currently on trial for the gruesome crime that shocked the nation as it highlighted the impacts of the border crisis created by the Biden-Harris administration.

Sources at the Department of Homeland Security confirmed Ibarra is a member of Tren de Aragua, NewsNation correspondent Ali Bradley reported. The New York Post made a similar report back in March.

TDA is a gang that formed in Venezuela and has largely controlled the black market in the country as it declined under socialist policies. Gang members have also reportedly acted as enforcers for the Venezuelan government against its perceived enemies.

The gang has been connected to murders, violent thefts, extortions, and human trafficking rings as members have expanded their area of operations.

Ibarra, like many other Venezuelans, took advantage of United States' open border and illegally crossed into El Paso, Texas, in 2022. He was released into the country, where he eventually ended up in New York City. While there, he was arrested for lesser crimes but was released before U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement could put a detainer on him.

A roommate of Ibarra and his brother, who is also a member of TDA, testified they were able to get from New York City to Athens, Georgia, in September 2023 by going to the Roosevelt Hotel, where they received a "humanitarian flight."

"On January 20th, the protection of criminal illegal aliens in America ENDS once and for all," President-elect Donald Trump's campaign said on Monday in response to the revelation.

Prosecutors are calling Riley's murder a crime of opportunity. Ibarra allegedly encountered her while she was out for a jog near the college. Data from Riley's smartwatch revealed she fought off her attacker for almost 20 minutes before he apparently used a rock to crush her skull.

TDA has been in the news since the gang came to prominence in late 2023. The gang has been connected to murders, violent thefts, extortions, and human trafficking rings as members have expanded their areas of operation. Before the border crisis started in 2021, TDA mostly stayed within South America, having followed other Venezuelans who escaped their crippled nation.

TDA is present in states such as Texas, New York, Florida, Tennessee, Colorado, and Illinois.

Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!

Violent Venezuelan gang infiltrates every major city in Tennessee



The vicious Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua has infiltrated every major city in Tennessee, according to state officials.

TDA has been tied to criminal activity across the United States, including apartment takeovers in Aurora, Colorado, and violent crimes in New York City and Dallas, Texas. Thus far, the gang has primarily, but not exclusively, focused on expanding its presence in sanctuary jurisdictions, where local law enforcement agencies are forbidden to cooperate with federal immigration officials.

'They will not hesitate to attack their opponents in public and in broad daylight.'

During a budget meeting this week, Tennessee Bureau of Investigation director David Rausch warned Governor Bill Lee (R) that TDA has recently become a growing threat in the state.

According to Rausch, the gang started to appear in Tennessee two years ago, but its influence has substantially expanded over the past few months. He noted that TDA is active in Memphis and Nashville.

"We first saw them a couple years ago where we uncovered a group here in a human trafficking operation," Rausch explained. "We recognized a number of the members here trafficking females that they had abducted from Venezuela and brought them here."

The bureau successfully captured several individuals involved in the illicit operation, but "many of them fled" out of Tennessee, Rausch said.

"Now what we are seeing is they are back. They are back in all of our major cities," he declared.

When TDA arrives in a new area, it starts by running trafficking operations, then expands into other criminal activities, including organized retail theft and drug trafficking, Rausch told Lee.

He expressed concerns about TDA's brazenness and its targeting of cartel members.

"They will, and they have taken on the cartel head-on, and they're very violent in their efforts," Rausch continued. "They will not hesitate to attack their opponents in public and in broad daylight."

"Recently, there was a video that they shot where they shot an individual, a cartel member, 31 times. Broad daylight, on video, and posted it to social media," he stated.

Rausch did not share how many TDA gang members he believes are in the state but noted that "they're in numbers here."

According to Straight Arrow News, the Knoxville Police Department is unaware of any TDA activity in the area.

The Department of Homeland Security has reportedly identified more than 600 individuals in the U.S. with ties to TDA, Blaze News previously reported. The federal government has confirmed the gang's activity in at least 15 states, and it may have expanded to another eight.

Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!

Chicago Mayor Johnson labels Trump a ‘threat’ to ‘black families’ in vow to shield illegal aliens from deportation



During a speech reaffirming his commitment to keep Chicago a sanctuary city, Mayor Brandon Johnson labeled President-elect Donald Trump a “threat” to “black families.”

Since August 2022, Chicago has spent roughly $150 million to provide housing and food to 43,000 migrant arrivals.

'His threat is not just toward new arrivals and undocumented families.'

On Tuesday, in his first statement addressing Trump's victory, Johnson vowed to protect illegal aliens from the incoming administration's mass deportation plans.

"We will not bend or break," Johnson declared. "Our values will remain strong and firm. We will face likely hurdles in our work over the next four years, but we will not be stopped and we will not go back."

Johnson made a perplexing claim that Trump's commitment to deport illegal immigrants is somehow a threat to black families in America.

"The president-elect, former President Trump, his threat is not just toward new arrivals and undocumented families. His threats are also against black families," he stated. "We're going to stand up and protect undocumented individuals."

Johnson has referred to Trump as a "tyrant" and claimed that his plan to deport large numbers of illegal aliens is "unconscionable and dangerous."

The mayor made the commitment to keep Chicago a sanctuary despite a significant rise in criminal activities associated with the transnational crime group Tren de Aragua.

According to locals, the South Side of Chicago has become overrun with Venezuelan migrants, including TDA members.

Tyrone Muhammad, founder and CEO of Ex-Cons for Community and Social Change, warned in September that the city might soon "go up in flames," raising concerns about TDA members who have been challenging notorious local gangs.

Records obtained by the New York Post revealed that at least 30 of the gang's members have been arrested by the Chicago Police Department from January 2023 through September 2024.

Despite this, Johnson stated that the CPD would be prohibited from cooperating with federal immigration officials.

Trump tapped former ICE director Tom Homan as his administration's "border czar."

Homan had a harsh warning for sanctuary jurisdictions that aim to protect illegal aliens from federal law enforcement officials.

"Sanctuary cities are sanctuaries for criminals," Homan declared.

"If you are not going to help us, get the hell out of the way because we're gonna do it," Homan said on Monday. "So if we can't get assistance in New York City, we may have to double the number of agents we send in New York City."

Homan pledged to "flood agents to sanctuary cities" to rid the country of criminal illegal aliens.

Muhammad told Fox News Digital, "We're going to be on the ground with him [Homan] to remove these illegals and these migrants and identifying where they are because they have greatly diminished our way of life here in Chicago."

Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!

Cover-up? What Aurora officials already knew about rising Venezuelan gang violence



City officials in Aurora, Colorado, repeatedly denied the growing threat of the Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua despite apparent early warnings, according to emails obtained by Aurora City Council member Danielle Jurinsky.

In a Wednesday post on X, Jurinsky shared an internal Aurora Police Department email dated November 16, 2023, from Gang Intervention Unit Officer Matthew Walters to Chief of Police Chris Poppe and several other colleagues.

'The liberal media and some politicians want you to believe that it is okay for people to live like this because it's just a handful of apartment complexes and not the entire city of Aurora.'

Walters explained that he had attached a "Gang Unit Bulletin" on TDA, which he planned to share with the entire department the following day. He noted that the announcement included information provided to him by a Homeland Security Investigations sergeant and an Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent, according to a photo of the email.

The ICE officer "stated TdA has decided to make Denver their headquarters due to sanctuary policies and location," Walters apparently wrote.

Poppe replied, asking Walters, "Is there any Aurora-centric info that could be included in the bulletin? Known addresses, or hangouts, or specifics cops should be aware of?"

In another X post, Jurinsky leaked a June 30 department email regarding an incident at Whispering Pines Apartments, owned by CBZ Management. According to the correspondence, a cleaning crew worker reported being "threatened ... to give up the keys to the vacant apartments … so that a group of Venezuelans could move people into" the complex.

"Suspects left but not before warning her to comply or else they would kill her and her family," the email continued, according to the photo.

The suspects reportedly stated that they had the building "under surveillance and that they had over 200 people working for them."

"I would highly recommend you guys to take 2-3 friends with you when responding to any calls there," the department email added.

In an email, Major Crime Homicide Unit Sergeant Jeff Longnecker stated, "I would be happy to go over this case with anyone that still denies this is a major problem."

Longnecker was referring to a murder, but it is not clear from the email which case precisely.

He expressed frustration that multiple agencies appeared to have opened criminal investigations into TDA, but "nobody seems to be able to work with each other."

"As soon as this group kills an innocent person all hell is going to break lose and I would hate for us all to be exposed for not sharing information with each other and/or not being able to show that we have dedicated proactive units and investigative units directly impacting this problem," Longnecker wrote.

Jurinsky torched some city leaders for downplaying the severity of the situation.

In a separate post on X, she stated, "The liberal media and some politicians want you to believe that it is okay for people to live like this because it's just a handful of apartment complexes and not the entire city of Aurora. I ask again what the threshold is for these 'leaders' to care?"

CBZ Management wrote in a post on social media this week, "The police knew about the TDA gangs taking over our properties - as early as Sept 22, 2023 - and didn't warn us! Worse, they put the onus of security on our employees without us knowing the danger!"

The company shared another leaked internal department email dated September 2023, with the subject line "Tren de Aragua."

"According to interviews from residence [sic] Tren de Aragua is working out of Aurora and residing in our city," the sergeant's email apparently read.

Ryan Luby, a city of Aurora spokesperson, told the Denver Gazette, "We must remember that police departments and the justice system as a whole must rely on admissible evidence, not hearsay, rumors and fragments of information."

"Contrary to claims made on social media and by select news organizations, the city, including APD, has remained consistent in responses on this matter," Luby wrote in a Thursday statement to the news outlet.

Luby also pushed back on CBZ Management, telling the Denver Gazette, "Instead of expending the resources to address the documented issues, CBZ and its stakeholders have hired a team of attorneys and, as we learned today, a Florida-based public relations firm to engage in diversionary tactics, fight the city in its city charter-mandated duties to enforce city code, and alternative narratives with many of you."

Governor Jared Polis' office told the news outlet that the governor's office is "committed to supporting local law enforcement and their work to keep our communities safe."

Polis previously called TDA's takeover of apartment complexes "largely a feature of Danielle Jurinsky's imagination."

"The state was first notified by Homeland Security in late July that they were monitoring activity in Aurora, the state then immediately reached out to the city of Aurora, including the Governor reaching out to the Mayor, to offer any assistance needed," the governor's office told the Denver Gazette. "When Governor Polis met with Mayor Coffman in late July, we were informed that the city did not have a strong criminal case yet and the state offered dedicated investigative support in the form of Troopers and CBI agents to work cases, and DHSEM provided analysts to support investigations to identify and arrest known criminal gang elements."

Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!

600 immigrants with possible ties to Venezuelan gang identified — fewer than 5% in federal custody



The Department of Homeland Security has reportedly identified more than 600 immigrants currently in the United States who have possible ties to Tren de Aragua, a violent Venezuelan gang.

According to data obtained and released by NBC News on Wednesday, approximately 100 of the individuals have been designated as “subjects of interest” after they were found to be confirmed gang members. The DHS advised the FBI to place those individuals on its watch list, officials told the news outlet.

'Almost disturbingly low.'

It noted that after further review, the rest of the 500 immigrants may be gang members themselves or victims and witnesses linked to the gang.

The DHS data obtained by NBC News also revealed that TDA has confirmed activity in at least 15 states and may have a presence in another eight.

A spokesperson for the department told the news outlet, “DHS has an ongoing operation to crack down on gang members through re-screening certain individuals previously encountered, in addition to the rigorous screening and vetting at the border.”

“All individuals confirmed or suspected to be gang members are referred for criminal prosecution or detained and placed into expedited removal,” the spokesperson added.

However, the data revealed that fewer than 5% of the 600 individuals identified by the DHS are in federal custody with Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

A DHS official told NBC News that ICE has not yet detained some of the individuals because they are currently in custody with other law enforcement agencies, or ICE may not know where the individuals are located. The official also stated that the federal government may still be confirming the individuals’ connections to the gang or to crimes.

According to the DHS official, TDA “prey[s] first and foremost on Venezuelans.”

“We know that they control human smuggling routes out of Venezuela and into Colombia and into Panama. And they are controlling more of these passages as individuals move north through Mexico,” the official said.

Frank Figliuzzi, a former FBI assistant director for counterintelligence and an NBC News contributor, called the DHS’ discovery of 600 immigrants with possible ties to TDA “almost disturbingly low.”

“It should be higher,” he added.

Ammon Blair, a senior fellow at the Texas Public Policy Foundation and former Border Patrol agent, told NBC News that the federal government does not know the full extent of TDA’s presence in the U.S.

“When you look at the process, unfortunately, they’re just steamrolled through,” Blair stated. “The Border Patrol has created a conveyor belt, an automated system to process them and release them as fast as possible into the United States. We were not asking questions.”

Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!

Sabo sentenced! America's best street artist needs our support



Aurora, Colorado, has finally started cracking down on crime.

No, not the violent Venezuelan gangs taking over apartment complexes, terrorizing tenants, and beating property managers to a bloody pulp.

'My wife is a migrant. I must have paid over $10,000 to get her here legally. ... I ... don’t have a problem with immigration; I have a problem with unchecked illegal immigration.'

We're sure Colorado Attorney General Phil Weiser will get to that eventually.

In the meantime, the intrepid lawman has cracked the case of his career: nabbing the maniac behind the street art protesting the town's mass immigration-induced mayhem.

That's right: After two decades of risking life, limb, and liberty to bring truly provocative and countercultural art to the public, Sabo has been busted.

As the Gateway Pundit's Patty McMurray reports, the formally trained former Marine was hauled before a judge last week for sentencing.

Unable to afford a lawyer and unwilling to trust one supplied by the state, the based Banksy represented himself — offering this stirring statement to judge deciding his fate:

My wife is a migrant. I must have paid over $10,000 to get her here legally. I paid for expensive biometric scans twice, a health screening, background check. Documents had to be signed stating that she would not be a burden to the taxpayers. She’s never spent a day worried about having a roof over her head or where our next meal was coming from, this because we did it the right way. I, like most, don’t have a problem with immigration; I have a problem with unchecked illegal immigration.

I’m a self-employed artist who’s educated at one of the top art colleges in the world. I know my country; I speak its language. I’m familiar with the marketplace of my chosen profession, and with all this, I can no longer afford to live in my own country. How do these migrants have any hope to to make it here, at least not without financially bankrupting our communities while at the same time overlooking America’s forgotten poor, including veterans who live out on the street?

These newcomers, some of whom are extremely violent, are always dumped in underrepresented communities, making an already bad situation worse. Last winter, tens of thousands of improperly vetted migrants, many illegally in the country, were dropped off in Denver in -12 degree weather. Many forced to brave the cold in tents. It was reported that some were forced to prostitute their wives, daughters, and girlfriends simply to keep from starving or freezing to death. Politicians from both sides of the political aisle should be ashamed of themselves for what they put the poorest from around the world through by conning them to come here — especially in the middle of winter.

I pray we still have a First Amendment to help protect political art, which is its intended purpose. Nothing was destroyed or permanently damaged, except maybe for the feelings of some local politicians for pointing out the mess they’ve made of things.

Now Sabo must pay a fine and perform community service — all while continuing to support himself and his work on a shoestring budget.

In an email to Align, Sabo emphasized that he's not the only one sticking his neck out to spread the truth.

"My main assistant is about to pull the plug on his mother, and I'd like to spend some time with him as well," he writes. "And I'm not rich, so this would help. That guy has [done more to help] us putting up art than anyone I know."

In other words, if you're already a Sabo fan, now would be a good time to express your support.

Go to his website and buy some original art — perhaps his new Vote Wisely poster. Or contribute to the GiveSendGo he's set up to help pay his legal fees.

And if you're not a Sabo fan yet, check out Align's coverage of his previous missions here.

Venezuelan gangs getting away scot-free, NYPD says: 'Every single one of them is on the streets today'



New York Police Department Detective Bureau Assistant Chief Jason Savino warned that young and violent members of the Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua are not facing any real consequences for their criminal actions in the Big Apple.

During a Tuesday interview with WNYW, Savino explained that the transnational gang has a significant presence in the Times Square area, particularly around the former Roosevelt Hotel turned immigrant shelter. He warned that the violent group has even started recruiting children.

'It's a product of bail reform.'

Savino stated that the police department is aware that the group has gotten its hands on many firearms, as evidenced by photographs posted online by alleged gang members.

He described TDA as "tremendously brazen" and "absolutely ruthless."

"Individuals ... have committed a multitude of crimes with basically no repercussions," Savino told WNYW.

The assistant chief explained that in the New York City area, the group started out as a robbery crew.

"Twenty individuals arrested for upwards of 50 robberies," Savino said. "And out of those 20 individuals, every single one of them is on the streets today."

According to Savino, the young gang members are not facing consequences because of their age and bail reforms.

"We put a lot on our DA [Alvin Bragg]; we have to look at our judges as well," he added.

As the gang has continued to establish itself in the city, its recruiting process has become more organized, he added.

"Formerly, it was kind of scattered all over the place," Savino said of TDA's recruiting efforts. "But now we're seeing that structure where there's actually kick-ups where people are recruiting these young members — as young as 11, and they've been described in some of these robbery incidents as young as eight years old."

Savino is deeply concerned there will soon be a gang war because the TDA subset in Times Square, which refers to itself as "Los Diablos de la 42" or "Little Devils on 42nd Street," has "called out" the Latin Kings, one of the city's most notorious gang.

"It's a recipe for potential disaster," Savino told WNYW.

He told the New York Post that the gang is communicating with one another using group chats "on their government-issued phones."

"It's a product of bail reform," Savino added. "We tried to try some in criminal court, somewhat unsuccessfully."

Bragg's office did not respond to a request for comment from Blaze News.

Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!