Texas Governor Greg Abbott has once again taken a bold step in safeguarding the Lone Star State. On Monday, Abbott declared that his administration is launching an aggressive crackdown on the notorious Venezuelan gang, Tren de Aragua (TDA), a group known for its ruthless violence and posing a serious threat to Texans, as reported by Click 2 Houston.

During a press conference in Houston, Abbott made it clear that Texas would not tolerate criminal activity from these violent gangs, stating, “It needs to stop. It needs to stop today.”

Gov. Abbott signed a proclamation officially labeling TDA as a foreign terrorist organization, empowering law enforcement with new tools to dismantle their operations. His plan directs the Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS) to form specialized strike teams composed of highway patrol officers, SWAT teams, helicopters, K9 units, and the Texas Rangers, all aimed at regions with known gang activity.

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“We are bringing the full weight of the Texas government against Tren de Aragua,” Abbott emphasized. “Texas will use the courts to halt their operations, use civil asset forfeiture to take their property, use enhanced criminal penalties to keep them in jail, behind bars for longer periods of time.” His message was loud and clear: Texas will not become a safe haven for gangs looking to terrorize communities.

Yesterday, I announced Texas is launching a statewide operation to go after the Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua.@TxDPS will coordinate with federal and local partners through Texas Anti-Gang Centers to stop these dangerous criminals.

Our #1 priority is keeping Texans safe. pic.twitter.com/LHH9lQaLt0

— Greg Abbott (@GregAbbott_TX) September 17, 2024

A particular hotspot for recent gang activity, according to Abbott, has been El Paso, where 20 suspected members of TDA were recently arrested at a local hotel. While El Paso County officials have pushed back on claims that gangs had taken over the hotel, calling it a broader criminal investigation, Abbott remains firm in his efforts to target Venezuelan gangs operating in the state.

Gov. Abbott also invoked Senate Bill 4, passed last year, which hands down stiff penalties for human smuggling. Those convicted of smuggling or running stash houses now face a minimum of 10 years behind bars. Abbott made it clear that this law would be used extensively against TDA, who are heavily involved in human smuggling operations.

Joining Abbott at the conference were key figures, including DPS Director Steve McCraw, Texas Border Czar Mike Banks, and Chris Cabrera, the Vice President of the National Border Patrol Council. Cabrera highlighted the significance of the threat, stating, “I could sit up here and throw statistics at you and give you numbers as far as how many people are crossing and how many got away, but none of that would really matter when dealing with the issue that we have here with this gang.”

Earlier this year, the U.S. Department of the Treasury had also classified Tren de Aragua as a transnational criminal organization, while the State Department announced rewards of up to $12 million for information leading to the gang’s leadership.

Abbott concluded by stating that Texas law enforcement is working to develop a comprehensive database to track TDA members, as the gang’s violent operations have already spread across the nation, even linked to over 100 law enforcement investigations, including a shooting two New York City police officers.