What to Know
- The Queens District Attorney's office announced the indictment of 10 people for a gun trafficking operation in Queens, the Bronx and Manhattan. The individuals are alleged members of the 'Tren de Aragua' gang.
- Under Operation Train Derail, authorities also seized 34 guns and almost 50 grams of "pink cocaine."
- Investigators also uncovered and stopped and attempt from the group of defendants to send guns to Columbia with the intention of obtaining a bigger profit from the sales.
Ten alleged gang members were indicted on criminal charges relating to a gun trafficking operation that conducted firearm sales in Queens and other parts of New York City, the Queens district attorney and NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch announced Wednesday.
The individuals arrested and charged are suspected to be members of the Venezuelan gang 'Tren de Aragua,' which of late has allegedly recruited kids to commit crimes across the five boroughs.
Operation Train Derail — the undercover investigation around the Venezuelan gang — also resulted in the seizure of 34 firearms and 48 grams of "pink cocaine," a drug cocktail also known as tusi.
"As alleged, the defendants conspired to traffic and sell illegal firearms and drugs in New York City, with each defendant playing a different role in furtherance of Tren de Aragua’s agenda," said Queens DA Melinda Katz. "The geographic scope of their alleged conduct extended on a national level to include Connecticut, Pennsylvania, Texas, Florida, Colorado and internationally to Colombia. As a result of our investigation, 34 dangerous weapons are now off the streets, and we are dismantling this gang as it attempts to establish itself locally."
The operation dates back to June, when members of the DA's office and the NYPD Firearms Investigation Unit began the undercover investigation in Queens. The officers participated in 22 different gun sales, which included two AR-15 assault riffles sales.
According to the 120-count indictment, several of the gun sales occurred in broad daylight in a shopping center parking lot in College Point. In another instance, an AR-15 was "placed in a garbage bag and sold in the middle of the afternoon in the Bronx."
Investigators also uncovered and stopped and attempt from the group of defendants to send guns to Columbia with the intention of obtaining a bigger profit from the sales.
Most of the defendants have been in the country since 2023, the Queens DA office said.
“Tren de Aragua is one of the most dangerous gangs in the country, and the NYPD has taken significant action to shut down their operations in New York City," said Commissioner Tisch. "Today’s indictment makes clear that we will not let them terrorize our streets with illegal guns, assault weapons, and dangerous narcotics that threaten all our communities."
Out of the 10 defendants, six were arrested on Tuesday and two others were apprehended and arraigned on Wednesday. Two other defendants have yet to be arraigned.
On Wednesday afternoon, the U.S. Southern District of New York also announced firearm-related charges against Anderson Zambaro-Pacheco, a fugitive member of the 'Tren de Aragua' gang. The federal government alleges Zambaro-Pachecho was involved in a Aurora, Colorado shooting that left one person dead.
Homeland Security Investigation is also investigating alleged members of Tren de Aragua. According to NBC News, they law enforcement division of DHS has over 100 ongoing investigations involving alleged members.
Interpol, in January, disseminated an intelligence report that described the gang as "a major regional security threat" that has taken advantage of recent migration flows throughout Latin America to expand its reach of criminal activities.
