Spain dismantles its first suspected cell of Tren de Aragua, Venezuelan gang targeted by Trump
By Anabella González, Sol Amaya, CNN
(CNN) — Spanish police say they have arrested 13 people suspected of belonging to the Venezuelan criminal gang Tren de Aragua, in what would be the first time one of its cells has been dismantled in the country.
Most of the arrests during the operation last week took place in Barcelona, although authorities are still investigating whether there are other people linked to the network.
Tren de Aragua is one of Latin America’s most notorious criminal gangs and has long been targeted by US President Donald Trump, who accuses the group of drug trafficking, murder and other acts of violence in the Western Hemisphere.
In January, Trump signed an executive order that designated Tren de Aragua and other gangs as foreign terrorist organizations. Since September, the US has carried out several deadly strikes in the Caribbean against alleged drug boats it says are tied to the group.
Among the suspects arrested in Spain were various nationalities, but “most were of Venezuelan origin,” a chief inspector at the National Police’s General Information Office told CNN.
The operation comes after authorities arrested the brother of the organization’s top worldwide leader, known as “Niño Guerrero,” in March 2024 for his alleged participation in terrorism, human trafficking, arms trafficking, extortion, money laundering and criminal association.
His arrest led Spanish police to suspect the gang had a broader presence in the country.
The police said their subsequent investigation detected a network of people in various parts of the country “who made up a criminal organization that was financed, mainly, by drug trafficking, especially tusi and cocaine.”
Tusi, also known as “pink cocaine,” is a powdered drug cocktail that usually produces hallucinogenic effects, according to the US Drug Enforcement Administration. Its name comes from “2C-B,” the chemical originally used to create this drug, the DEA says.
Spanish police told CNN they dismantled the cell when it was still in its early, “embryonic” phase, before it was further embedded in the country. They also suspect that it had been active since 2023, operating in the neighborhoods of El Raval and areas near the Arc de Triomf, in Barcelona, as well as in the neighborhood of El Cañaveral, in the east of the Spanish capital Madrid.
What they still do not know is who supplied the cell with the cocaine, although they suspect that it came from other European countries.
The cell is also thought to have prepared tusi in their own homes, according to the police.
The law enforcement operation that led to their arrest was supported by the Colombian National Police and the AMERIPOL-EL PACTO 2.0 project, which seeks cooperation between the European Union and Latin American and Caribbean countries.
CNN’s Isa Cardona contributed to this story.
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