DOJ indicts alleged high-ranking Tren de Aragua member on terrorism charges for the first time

A high-ranking Tren de Aragua gangbanger was slapped with federal terrorism charges — marking the first time US authorities have levied the criminal offense against an alleged member of the notorious Venezuelan gang, the Justice Department announced Wednesday. 

Jose Enrique Martinez Flores, 24, was charged in Texas federal court on a new indictment for conspiring to provide and providing material support to a foreign terrorist organization — a designation President Trump assigned to Tren de Aragua in February, according to a DOJ press release. 

Martinez Flores, also known as “Chuqui,” was also hit with international cocaine distribution charges for smuggling more than five kilograms across the US border.

“TdA is not a street gang — it is a highly structured terrorist organization that put down roots in our country during the prior administration,” Attorney General Pam Bondi said in a statement. 

“Today’s charges represent an inflection point in how this Department of Justice will prosecute and ultimately dismantle this evil organization, which has destroyed American families and poisoned our communities.”

Prosecutors said the alleged gangbanger is a “high-ranking” TdA member, who is immersed in the leadership’s inner circle in Bogota, Columbia. 

Flores was nabbed in Colombia in March at the feds’ direction and remains in custody pending extradition to the US. He faces life in prison and a $10 million fine if convicted. 

“TdA is a direct threat to our national security, to our communities, and to the Americans,” FBI Director Kash Patel said in a statement. 

“Together with our law enforcement partners, the FBI continues in our pursuit to eliminate this violent terrorist organization from our streets, and today’s announcement makes it clear that these criminals, especially the leaders of these cartels, have no place in our country.”

The case comes in response to Trump’s promise to crack down on and target criminal drug organizations and violent gangs of illegal immigrants when he assumed office. 

Along with a mass deportation effort across the country, Trump has also taken aggressive measures to quell transnational criminal organizations by invoking the 18th-century Alien Enemies Act to deport Venezuelan gang members to a notorious El Salvadoran “hellhole” megaprison without a trial. 

The Justice Department also charged 27 suspected TdA members Monday in Manhattan federal court with racketeering charges — the first time the feds have wielded the Mafia-style offense on the violent gang. 

NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch said the charges target a dangerous gang that has “terrorized” the Big Apple since 2023. 

The feds accused the alleged migrant gang members of plotting murders, extortion and sex trafficking young women across New York City. 

They face the possibility of life in prison.