Nearly two dozen alleged members of the Venezuelan-based Tren de Aragua gang barricaded themselves inside a unit at an ICE detention facility in Texas on April 26 and threatened to take U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers hostage, according to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS).
The detainees used cots to block off entry points, covered surveillance cameras, obstructed windows, and flooded the unit by clogging the toilets, in what officials described as a coordinated uprising that lasted several hours.
The detainees ignored repeated commands from ICE officers during the standoff, DHS reported.
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The gang, identified by U.S. officials as a transnational criminal organization, has drawn increased attention in recent months as its presence among migrant populations continues to raise security concerns.
The attempted facility takeover came just days after a group of detainees at the same Texas location used a drone to flash a banner reading, “Help, we want to be deported. We are not terrorists. SOS.”
BREAKING:
23 violent Tren de Aragua gang members have threatened to HARM and TAKE ICE AGENTS and STAFF AS HOSTAGES after barricading themselves in, and destroying their housing unit.This comes after Reuters recently published sympathetic coverage of these same gang members… pic.twitter.com/cwRq9Uk3G0
— Carson Krow (@carsonkrow) May 14, 2025
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The message was widely reported, and DHS later confirmed that the individuals involved were also alleged members of the Tren de Aragua gang.
Earlier this month, separate drone footage showed detainees arranging themselves in the facility yard to spell out the letters “SOS” in another effort to call attention to their situation.
In response to the recent unrest, DHS is now asking the U.S. Supreme Court to lift an injunction and allow deportations to resume under the Alien Enemies Act, an 18th-century law that the Trump administration previously used to deport foreign nationals suspected of gang affiliations.
The deportations were blocked after legal challenges claimed the migrants were removed without hearings.
“Keeping these foreign terrorists in ICE facilities poses a serious threat to ICE officers, staff, and other detainees,” said DHS Assistant Secretary for Public Affairs Tricia McLaughlin.
“The media repeated these TdA gang members’ false sob stories, but the truth is these are members of a foreign terrorist organization that rape, maim, and murder for sport,” she said.
This stunt by sanctuary politicians puts the safety of our law enforcement agents and detainees at risk.
All members and staff need to comply with facility rules, procedures, and instructions from ICE personnel on site.@TriciaOhio pic.twitter.com/LvRSpRpMcx
— Homeland Security (@DHSgov) May 13, 2025
The group had been slated for deportation to El Salvador, where they would be held at the high-security CECOT prison, which has been described by officials as a facility designed to contain the region’s most dangerous criminals.
Today, the first 238 members of the Venezuelan criminal organization, Tren de Aragua, arrived in our country. They were immediately transferred to CECOT, the Terrorism Confinement Center, for a period of one year (renewable).
The United States will pay a very low fee for them,… pic.twitter.com/tfsi8cgpD6
— Nayib Bukele (@nayibbukele) March 16, 2025
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However, deportation proceedings were halted by the Supreme Court’s temporary block of the administration’s use of the Alien Enemies Act.
Among the individuals identified by DHS in the footage was Diover Millan, 24, who was initially released into the country under Biden-Harris administration policies but was later apprehended by ICE.
DHS confirmed that Millan has been flagged as a member of the Tren de Aragua gang.
Another detainee seen in the drone footage was 19-year-old Jeferson Daniel Escalona Hernandez, who was arrested in Texas in January for evading arrest in a vehicle.
Following his arrest, he was briefly held at a migrant detention center at Guantanamo Bay, which the Trump administration reopened, before being transferred to the Texas facility.
Escalona Hernandez reportedly admitted his gang affiliation during intake procedures, according to DHS.
However, in a phone interview with Reuters from the detention center, he denied the claim, saying he never belonged to a gang and had volunteered to be deported to Venezuela.
“They’re making false accusations about me,” he said.
“I don’t belong to any gang. I fear for my life here. I want to go to Venezuela.”
He stated that he believed federal authorities identified him as a gang member after finding images on his phone showing him making hand gestures associated with gang activity in Venezuela.
DHS officials continue to emphasize the potential security risks posed by housing high-risk individuals in federal immigration facilities.
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The facility is in Anson, TX. These detainees need to be expelled from the U.S. but leftist judicial meddling has prevented their removal. Most were en route to the airport in Abilene, TX to be transported when ordered back by a judge’s ruling. I have no confidence in the SCOTUS under Roberts, but damn it he needs to act- now.One way or another we need clarification of the Court’s position. BTW I’m a TX attorney for thirty years.
The slimy dirt-bag illlegal crimiinals should all have been on the next plane to Venezuela.
We use to put rabied dogs down!
ALL judges that issue injunctions need to be put on the next plane to El Salvador