U.S. Offers Up to $50M for Three Tren de Aragua Leaders

U.S. Offers Up to $50M for Three Tren de Aragua Leaders

The Justice Department (DOJ) on Thursday announced up to $50 million in combined rewards for information leading to the arrests or convictions of three fugitive Tren de Aragua leaders. One of them, Giovanni Vicente Mosquera Serrano, 37, known as “El Viejo,” is already on the FBI’s Ten Most Wanted list, and the reward for him just tripled, from up to $5 million to up to $15 million.

The largest offer is for Yohan José Romero, 48, whose reward rose from up to $4 million to up to $20 million. The third man, Juan Gabriel Rivas Núñez, 44, is the subject of a new offer of up to $15 million.

Court documents identify Romero as the gang’s current leader. He took over after a U.S. military strike reportedly killed previous leader Héctor Rusthenford Guerrero Flores, known as Niño Guerrero, in June 2026. Two months later, in August, Colombian forces captured Luis Saúl Pérez Nieto, the gang’s Peru chief. Romero’s two deputies are accused of dividing the work geographically. Mosquera Serrano allegedly directs operations in the United States, Colombia, and Central America, while Rivas Núñez oversees the gang’s operations in Venezuela. Prosecutors say the group’s activities there include illegal gold mining.

Federal prosecutors in Texas first brought material support charges against all three in 2025. A nine-count superseding indictment returned in July was unsealed in November. Mosquera Serrano also faces cocaine trafficking charges. Attorney General Todd Blanche said the department has charged more than 350 Tren de Aragua members and associates since President Trump returned to office.

“Their criminal enterprise has spread fear, violence, and lawlessness, and we will not stop until those responsible are brought to justice,” Blanche said.

Tren de Aragua started as a prison gang in Venezuela. The Trump administration designated it a foreign terrorist organization in 2025, and Mosquera Serrano became the first member placed on the FBI’s Ten Most Wanted list in June 2025. Prosecutors say the gang also made money in the United States through ATM “jackpotting,” forcing machines to spit out cash. Investigators say the alleged scheme targeted or hit machines in 47 states, Washington, D.C., and several foreign countries.

The FBI and DEA are working with Houston police, the U.S. Marshals Service, and Colombian authorities.

Aaron Reitz, the U.S. attorney for the Southern District of Texas, has a message for the three men.

“I’m confident the enhanced bounties will incentivize these terrorists’ return to my district, where we will bring them to justice.”

The charges are waiting in Texas. 

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