On Sept. 30, the United States extradited to Chile three fugitives, all of whom had been in the United States illegally, to face charges of homicide, kidnapping for ransom, and human smuggling in connection with their alleged involvement in Tren de Aragua (TdA). On Jan. 20, Executive Order 14157 designated TdA – a Venezuelan-based transnational criminal organization – to be a Foreign Terrorist Organization (FTO).
“The three defendants allegedly committed heinous crimes in the name of the foreign terrorist organization, Tren de Aragua, and then sought to escape justice by living in the United States illegally,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Matthew R. Galeotti of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division. “With today’s extradition, the Department of Justice has made the streets of the United States safer and assisted our Chilean partners in ensuring that these defendants will be held accountable for crimes that they are accused of committing in that country. The United States will no longer be a safe haven for members of TdA who pose a direct threat to our public safety and national security.”
The three extradited fugitives alleged to be associated with TdA are:
- Miguel Oyola Jimenez, 38, a dual Venezuelan and Ecuadorian national, surrendered to Chile to be prosecuted on two counts of kidnapping for ransom and one count of criminal association. Chile alleges that Oyola Jimenez directed and conducted kidnappings for ransom of migrant workers as part of a cell of TdA operating in Northern Chile;
- Jesus Alberto Golding Escalona, 34, a Venezuelan national, surrendered to Chile to be prosecuted on charges of aggravated murder and human smuggling. Chile alleges that Golding Escalona is associated with Tren de Desastre, a Chilean-based affiliate of TdA, and that he killed an individual as part of a large human smuggling operation in Chile; and
- Edgar Javier Benitez Rubio, 37, a Venezuelan national, surrendered to Chile to be prosecuted on charges of kidnapping with homicide, criminal association, and receiving stolen property. Chile alleges that Benitez Rubio was a member of TdA who participated in the kidnapping and killing of a well-known Venezuelan opposition member in Santiago, Chile, by providing the vehicles used to facilitate the kidnapping operation.
Also on Sept. 30, the United States extradited two additional defendants to Chile, both accused of violent crimes. Chile alleges that Gregoris Jose Cortez Fernandez, 35, a Venezuelan national, acted as the hitman for Gallineta, a violent street gang. Chile further alleges that Yonaiker Gabriel Sequera Olivero, 24, a Venezuelan national, shot an individual in connection with a dispute over narcotics.
The Justice Department’s Office of International Affairs worked with U.S. Attorney’s Offices in the Central District of Illinois, Southern District of Indiana, Eastern District of Michigan, and Western District of Washington, the U.S. Marshals Service, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, and Chilean prosecutors and law enforcement authorities, to facilitate the extraditions.