Héctor Guerrero Flores, leader of the Tren de Aragua gang, was killed in a US Southern Command airstrike in southern Venezuela earlier this week, confirmed by both Trump and Venezuelan authorities.
The strike was closely coordinated with Venezuelan forces, marking a deepening of security ties between the two countries after the removal of Nicolás Maduro in January.
The gang, once a prison outfit, expanded across Colombia, Ecuador, Peru and Chile, engaging in human trafficking, murder-for-hire, drug smuggling and kidnappings.
The US State Department had offered a $5 million reward for information leading to Guerrero's arrest, underscoring the high value placed on him as a target.
A US Southern Command airstrike killed Héctor Rusthenford Guerrero Flores, the leader of the Tren de Aragua gang, in southern Venezuela earlier this week. President Donald Trump announced the operation late Friday on his Truth Social platform, calling it a "quick and deadly kinetic strike" that was "closely coordinated with our friends in Venezuela." Venezuelan authorities confirmed the joint operation, stating that "structures of organized crime were dismantled" and that Guerrero was "neutralised" during the clashes.
“Under my leadership, the United States Southern Command launched a quick and deadly kinetic strike to successfully execute Niño Guerrero, the notorious leader of Tren de Aragua, one of the most bloodthirsty terrorist organizations on planet Earth.”
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said the operation was conducted earlier in the week and that Guerrero's death was confirmed during the strike. A video Trump posted appears to show a green building and a nearby shed being blown apart.
Guerrero, 47, transformed the gang from a prison outfit into a transnational criminal organization, according to the US State Department, which had offered a $5 million reward for information leading to his arrest. Under his command, Tren de Aragua diversified from extorting migrants into human trafficking for sexual exploitation, murder-for-hire, drug smuggling and kidnappings. It expanded operations from Venezuela into Colombia, Ecuador, Peru and Chile.
“We will find these vicious murderers and drug barons anytime, anywhere, and send them to the depths of hell where they belong.”
Friday's operation is the latest sign of rapprochement between Washington and Caracas. In January, US forces captured then-President Nicolás Maduro in a night-time raid at his compound, to face criminal charges in New York. The indictment named Guerrero Flores as an accomplice who helped Maduro collaborate with the gang. Since Maduro's removal, the US has lifted sanctions on his successor, Delcy Rodríguez, and pushed for cooperation on exploiting Venezuela's oil reserves, the world's most abundant.
Trump framed the strike as fulfilment of his pledge to avenge Americans killed by criminals who entered the US illegally. He blamed his predecessor Joe Biden for opening the southern border and allowing "monsters" to "rape, maim and murder American citizens with total impunity." He named 12-year-old Jocelyn Nungaray and 22-year-old Laken Riley as victims.
“With this action, the United States military brought punishment for them, their families and their loved ones.”
Early in his term, Trump designated Tren de Aragua as a Foreign Terrorist Organization and deported thousands of alleged members. The gang, now without its founder, faces a leadership void as US and Venezuelan forces pledge to keep up pressure.
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A US airstrike killed Héctor Guerrero Flores, the leader of Venezuela's most powerful criminal group, in a joint operation with Venezuelan authorities that deepens Washington's renewed security partnership with Caracas.
AI text based on reports by NewsIT, H Kαθημερινή, ΣΚΑΪ and other publishers. Published .