Notorious Venezuelan prison gang killed man in Albuquerque, stuffed body in suitcase, federal indictment alleges

Federal authorities say the "Guerilla Pobre" cell of the violent Tren de Aragua gang engaged in drug dealing, sex trafficking and threw "rumba" parties at secret locations in Albuquerque as early as 2022.

The cell's logo, an elephant, could be found on digital flyers announcing the clandestine rumbas where alcohol and illegal drugs, including a ketamine-based party drug called "tusi," flowed for a price.

On June 16, 2024, the TdA in Albuquerque turned to kidnapping and homicide inside an apartment near the Big I.  There, TdA members and associates held a telephone conference call with other gang members — who were abroad or elsewhere in the country — and interrogated a captive before the order came down to kill him, according to a federal indictment released Thursday.

The details of the unidentified man's slaying and his burial at a remote location in New Mexico were made public in the federal racketeering indictment of 11 alleged members of the gang. 

The New Mexico indictment was part of a national U.S. Department of Justice investigation alleging the transnational criminal gang that originated in Venezuelan prisons also had tentacles in Colorado, Texas and Nebraska, where 54 individuals have been indicted. 

The leader of the gang, who is allegedly involved in human trafficking, extortion, drug smuggling and violent crimes across South America and the U.S., was also indicted by a federal grand jury in southern New York. 

More than 70 individuals, including leaders and members of the designated foreign terrorist organization are linked to various violent crimes inside and outside the United States, including murder, robbery, extortion, kidnapping, money laundering and controlled substance trafficking, according to a DOJ news release.

"Tren de Aragua is a terrorist cartel that exploits our borders to bring murder, drugs, and chaos into American communities,” said Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche in the release. “This Department is crushing their leadership, dismantling their networks, and cutting off their money across the United States. There will be no safe haven here. If you cross our border to commit violent crime, we will find you, prosecute you, and put you away.”

Those indicted in the racketeering conspiracy in New Mexico are Henderson Yofre Mavo Finol, a.k.a. "Yoltran," "El Feo," and "El Viejo"; Adan Jose Ramirez Sanchez, a.k.a. "El Ciego"; Yefeso Rafael Colina Quiroz, a.k.a. "El Bebe"; Ichiro Eduardo Yamawaki Berrio, a.k.a. "Chiro"; Maikol David Aponte Ramos; Antoni Alfredo Herrera Montanez; Hagy Jose Barrios-Rojano; Yorvis Michel Carrascal Campo; Milton Jesus Lopez Guedes; Yhon Deivis Ron Saez; and Leonel Arquimedes Bustamante Sanchez, a.k.a "Leo Albuquerque."

They are charged with racketeering conspiracy, murder in aid of racketeering, kidnapping and aiding and abetting. The names of their attorneys, and court proceedings in the Albuquerque case, weren't available Thursday.

Of those indicted, Quiroz, Berrio, Ramos, Herrera Montanez, Guedes and Bustamante are in federal custody.

Their alleged multiple criminal acts also include robbery, fraud, sex trafficking and drug trafficking. Part of the conspiracy required that each co-conspirator had to commit at least two acts of racketeering activity as part of the enterprise.

The indictment alleges that all 11 defendants, who were citizens of either Venezuela or Colombia, illegally entered the United States no later than April 10, 2022, to "further the goals of the TdA enterprise." In the first six months of 2024, they manufactured and sold controlled substances that included ketamine, methamphetamine and fentanyl, dividing the profits and paying the sources of their supply in other states and countries.

From May 16, 2024, to about July 14 of that year, eight of the 11 are alleged to have planned and attended rumbas to generate money for the enterprise. The New Mexico cell organized the exclusive late-night parties for Venezuelans, using the money charged for cover fees, and alcohol and drug sales to finance their criminal activities. 

They flashed guns during the parties, and regularly checked entrants for weapons before allowing them to enter, according to the indictments. That allowed TdA members and associates "to maintain control over their drug trafficking activity and facilitate a culture of fear and intimidation." 

Sold at the rumbas was a popular drug in Venezuela called "tusi" that typically contains a mixture of ketamine and a variety of other drugs that included cocaine, fentanyl and methamphetamine. Tusi is usually manufactured to be pink in color and is sometimes referred to as "pink cocaine," according to the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration.

The indictment, which was still sealed on the court's website Thursday evening, alleges that Ramirez Sanchez and Mavo Finol orchestrated the June 2024 kidnapping of a man identified in court records as John Doe 1, and Mavo Finol and Barrios Rojano are alleged to have lured the man to the Peaks at Sandia View apartment complex in the 1500 block of Indian School NE on June 16.

The man was restrained and pistol-whipped with a firearm before gang members called "other TdA members, associates and leaders, located inside the United States and abroad" and interrogated John Doe 1 "about his loyalty to TdA and his connections to rival gangs," the indictment states.

A TdA leader on the phone call allegedly gave the order to kill the man, who was strangled to death, according to the indictment. Photos of the dead man's body were sent via cellphone to leaders and others to verify their mission was accomplished.

Three of the defendants indicted then allegedly cleaned up the scene of the killing while another obtained a suitcase used to transport the body to a burial site in a remote area of New Mexico.

Two months later, Ramirez Sanchez and other gang members and associates armed with firearms and other weapons forced their way into apartments at a complex in Aurora, Colorado, to locate rivals and people they believed owed the enterprise money. 

"Shortly afterwards, a shootout ensued at the apartment complex ... between the opposing groups" that led to the death of one man, the indictment states. Ramirez Sanchez is alleged to have been directly involved in the shootout.

One of the defendants, Bustamante Sanchez, has been in the custody of Immigration and Customs Enforcement since being arrested Aug. 20 in Albuquerque by a New Mexico State Police officer who recognized his vehicle as matching the description of a reportedly stolen vehicle, according to the ICE website.

The indictment unsealed in New York charged the reputed leader of the gang, while a top prosecutor accused him of being the mastermind of the group’s transformation into a global criminal organization.

The defendant, Hector Rusthenford Guerrero Flores, 42, had not been arrested as of late Thursday. The U.S. State Department has offered $5 million for information leading to his arrest.

Meanwhile, in Nebraska, the 54 people indicted, who include some associated with TdA, are alleged to have used malware to steal millions of dollars from U.S. financial institutions by hacking ATMs. Charges against some of the defendants included conspiracy to provide material support for terrorism, in addition to conspiracies to commit bank fraud, money laundering, bank burglary and computer fraud and abuse, according to the DOJ release.

Acting U.S. Attorney for New Mexico Ryan Ellison announced the indictment on behalf of the Homeland Security Task Force.