The Trump administration has secured an agreement with El Salvador to detain 238 members of Venezuela’s infamous Tren de Aragua gang, a violent criminal organization involved in human trafficking, drug smuggling, and extortion across Latin America. The arrangement, costing the U.S. just $6 million, is being praised as a cost-effective solution to keeping these dangerous criminals out of American communities.
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt emphasized the financial and security benefits of the deal, stating that it costs “pennies on the dollar” compared to what it would take to house these gang members in U.S. maximum-security prisons. “This agreement is a major win for American taxpayers and national security,” Leavitt said, stressing that President Trump remains committed to removing violent criminals and preventing them from endangering law-abiding citizens.
El Salvador’s President Nayib Bukele confirmed that the deported gang members have been placed in the country’s high-security Terrorism Confinement Center. While acknowledging that the U.S. payment was relatively modest, he pointed out that it provides meaningful support to El Salvador’s continued crackdown on gangs. Bukele’s administration has already drawn international attention for its no-nonsense approach to dismantling criminal organizations, successfully arresting tens of thousands of gang members in recent years.
The Tren de Aragua gang, which first emerged from Venezuela’s prison system, has expanded its operations across Latin America and into the United States. Law enforcement officials have linked the gang to horrific crimes, including human smuggling, extortion, and murder. Their increasing presence in the U.S. has raised serious security concerns, prompting swift action from the Trump administration to deport and detain these criminals.
This partnership with El Salvador is just one example of the administration’s tough-on-crime approach, prioritizing security while reducing costs for American taxpayers. With violent gangs exploiting weak border policies in the past, the Trump administration continues to take decisive action to protect American communities and dismantle transnational criminal networks before they can take root in the United States.