US Sanctions Venezuelans Citing Tren de Aragua Ties

The alleged financial leader of Tren de Aragua was among those sanctioned by the Treasury Department.

Salvadoran prison guards escort alleged members of the Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua in Tecoluca, El Salvador, on March 31, 2025. Secretaria de Prensa de la Presidencia/Handout via Reuters

The U.S. Treasury Department on Dec. 3 unveiled new sanctions against individuals allegedly affiliated with Tren de Aragua, the Venezuelan criminal gang designated by the United States as a foreign terrorist organization.

Among those sanctioned was Venezuelan entertainer Jimena Romina Araya Navarro, also known as Rosita, for allegedly providing material support to Tren de Aragua, according to the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC).

Navarro—described by OFAC as a DJ, actress, and model—is accused of having helped the gang’s sanctioned leader, Hector Rusthenford Guerrero Flores, escape from Venezuela’s Tocorón prison in 2012.

OFAC said that Navarro performs as a DJ at nightclubs around Colombia and that a portion of the revenue generated during her performances and events is given to the group’s leadership.

Kenffersso Jhosue Sevilla Arteaga, identified as Guerrero’s “righthand man” and the financial leader of Tren de Aragua, was also sanctioned by the State Department. He was allegedly involved in extortions, kidnappings, and homicides, according to OFAC.

Other individuals sanctioned include Richard Jose Espinal Quintero, Noe Manases Aponte Cordova, Asdrubal Rafael Escobar Cabrera—all of whom were identified as the gang’s cell leaders or lieutenants—and Cheison Royer Guerrero Palma, half-brother of Guerrero.

The sanctions will freeze all assets of the individuals within U.S. jurisdiction and prohibit U.S. persons from conducting any transactions with them unless permitted by OFAC.

In a statement, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent vowed to use every tool available to remove those affiliated with Tren de Aragua from the U.S. financial system and keep citizens safe.

“Under President Trump, barbaric terrorist cartels can no longer operate with impunity across our borders,” Bessent said. “The Tren de Aragua network’s narcotrafficking and human smuggling operations have long posed a grave threat to our nation.”

The Epoch Times was unable to reach the sanctioned individuals for comment.

The U.S. State Department on Dec. 3 upped the reward to $5 million for information leading to the arrest of Giovanni Vicente Mosquera Serrano, a leader of Tren de Aragua. U.S. authorities accuse him of orchestrating the gang’s drug trafficking and financial operations.

He was indicted in Texas in June and charged with international cocaine trafficking conspiracy and terrorism-related criminal activity. He faces up to life in prison and a possible $10 million fine.

Tren de Aragua, along with other foreign cartels and gang members, was designated as a foreign terrorist organization by the United States earlier this year.

The U.S. government determined that the gangs pose a “significant risk of committing, or have participated in training to commit acts of terrorism that threaten the security of United States nationals or the national security, foreign policy, or economy of the United States,” according to the notice published on the Federal Register earlier this year.

Jill McLaughlin contributed to this report.