The notorious Venezuelan street gang, Tren de Aragua (TdA), has seen swift expansion recently and is causing significant disruption across various communities, including those in the United States, according to experts. They reveal that the gang is leveraging technological proficiency to outperform competitors and establish a foothold in American territories.
“Their recruitment strategy includes targeting individuals with strong IT skills. This approach not only helps them remain active on social media to gather intelligence but also enables them to recruit and exploit tech-savvy individuals. This digital capability facilitates their operations, particularly in promoting and advertising within the realms of the sex trade and trafficking,” explained Ali Hopper, a researcher with the nonprofit GUARD Against Trafficking.
Jarrod Sadulski, the founder of GUARD Against Trafficking, along with Hopper, conducts research by visiting prisons along the southwest border as well as in Mexico and Central America. There, they engage in interviews with former gang and cartel members to gather insights for their studies.
Members of Venezuela’s Tren de Aragua gang and the MS-13 gang who were deported to El Salvador by the U.S. are shown in prison in San Salvador on March 31, 2025. (El Salvador Press Presidency Office/Anadolu via Getty Images)
“They absorb people into the ranks, sometimes by force,” Sadulski said. “For example, if they come across somebody in a Venezuelan community that they’ve embedded themselves in and that person has IT skills or some specific set of unique skills, they’ll draw in that person, even if it’s unwillingly, into their enterprise, into their gang, because of that special skill set that they have. So that speaks to their sophistication.”
Hopper said that much like organized cartels, TdA uses a specific cloud communication style as a way of avoiding digital surveillance while directing gang activities, unlike typical gangs.
“On top of that, that allows them the time to study the politics in that area,” he said. “They’re actually studying the politics of the area. They study the political climate, they study law enforcement, their routes, where they’re going, where they patrol, where they don’t patrol [and] what crimes are being prosecuted, what crimes are seen as lower level and not worth prosecuting.”
Sadulski and Hopper noted that even with their sophistication, the gang is still ultraviolent and willing to impulsively commit heinous crimes without prior planning.
One such crime recently occurred when 11 teen TdA members, including several minors, attacked New York City Police Department officers in Times Square.
“It’s horrific enough to be a victim of a crime,” New York City Mayor Eric Adams said of the attack. “But when someone openly assaults a police officer, you are attacking our symbol of safety, and it cannot be tolerated.
“People who prey on innocent people must be held accountable. They must be brought to justice.”
