Trump says US military strike killed leader of Tren de Aragua gang with help from Venezuela
President Donald Trump said Friday that a “swift and lethal kinetic” U.S. strike killed Héctor Rusthenford Guerrero Flores, known as “Niño Guerrero,” whom he called the infamous leader of the Tren de Aragua gang.
The United States has designated Tren de Aragua a terrorist organization. Guerrero Flores was charged in New York federal court with racketeering conspiracy and other crimes, including providing support to terrorists, authorities announced in December. The State Department had offered up to $5 million for information leading to his arrest.
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said the strike took place earlier this week on a Tren de Aragua compound in Venezuela. Venezuela confirmed its participation and said the operation occurred in the southeastern state of Bolivar, where clashes with criminal groups resulted in Guerrero Flores’ death.
Trump posted aerial video showing a small green-roofed building exploding and wrote that Tren de Aragua terrorists no longer have safe haven in Venezuela or anywhere else. Hegseth said the operation demonstrated a shared U.S.-Venezuelan commitment to combat narco-terrorists.
U.S. Attorney Jay Clayton previously described the gang as responsible for violence, extortion and drug trafficking across North America, South America and Europe. Trump nominated Clayton on Thursday to serve as director of national intelligence.
Tren de Aragua originated more than a decade ago in a prison in Venezuela’s Aragua state, where Guerrero Flores and other inmates took control through force and extortion, eventually turning the facility into a self-contained complex with amenities including a zoo, casino and restaurants.
