Tren de Aragua’s home country to accept regular deportation flights from US​

Richard Grenell, who serves as President Trump’s envoy for special missions, announced on Thursday that Venezuela will be accepting deportation flights from the United States on a regular basis.

“I am pleased to announce that Venezuela has agreed to resume flights to pick up their citizens who broke U.S. Immigration Laws and entered the U.S. illegally. The flights will resume Friday,” Grenell said on X.

Venezuela had previously refused to accept deportation flights under the Biden-Harris administration, which created a bad situation, with hundreds of thousands of Venezuelans illegally entering the United States.

Grenell previously visited the adversarial country to secure the release of American citizens who had been detained by the government.

Venezuelans who entered the United States prior to Trump entering office a second time are among the top demographics for the federal government to deport, as their presence led to the rise of Tren de Aragua. TDA, a violent gang, originated in Venezuela and then spread to Latin America before taking advantage of Biden’s open border.

‘We’re running out of beds in two weeks.’

Being able to deport Venezuelans on a regular basis will free up much-needed detention space, which will allow U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents to continue arrest operations.

Among the Venezuelans who have recently been arrested by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement are Carlos Daniel Teran-Aguilar, an 18-year-old citizen of Venezuela and alleged Tren de Aragua member, who was arrested during a recent operation in Houston, Texas. Teran-Aguilar was encountered at a port of entry in Calexico, California, in 2024 but then released into the United States due to Biden’s policies.

In Denver, Colorado, ICE agents arrested Ender Jose Roa Contreras, 29, another alleged Tren de Aragua member. He was apparently illegally in possession of a firearm during an encounter in 2024 but was only issued a citation and the firearm confiscated.

Roa Contreras likewise was first encountered at the Paso Del Norte port of entry in El Paso, Texas, in 2023. He was released into the United States and given a notice to appear.

Border czar Tom Homan has warned Congress that the federal government needs billions more dollars to fulfill Trump’s campaign promise of mass deportations.

“We’re running out of beds in two weeks. We’re at about 46,000 in custody now. We ought to be at 65,000 at this point in time. And we when run out of beds, we stop interior operations. When we arrest somebody, we got to have a bed to put them in for removal,” Homan said.

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