Four Venezuelan migrants who were allegedly part of a brutal, caught-on-video beatdown of two NYPD officers in January had been previously ordered deported but were released instead by federal law enforcement agents, according to documents obtained by a congressional committee. The four migrants are believed to be members of the notorious Tren de Aragua gang and were indicted for assaulting an NYPD officer and a lieutenant. Three of the suspects allegedly have criminal records in their home country but haven’t yet been deported from the U.S.
The House Judiciary Subcommittee on Immigration Integrity, Security, and Enforcement discovered that these migrants had multiple encounters with federal law enforcement before being apprehended for the brawl in Times Square. The interim report from the House subcommittee reveals a breakdown in the vetting process at the U.S.-Mexico border, which has allowed hundreds of thousands known for committing crimes in their home countries to roam freely about the United States.
All four migrants were charged with assault on a police officer and obstructing a governmental investigation after they were caught on camera punching and kicking an NYPD officer and lieutenant during their January melee. Two of the suspects have since agreed to lenient plea deals with Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg’s office, while another is awaiting trial.
One of the suspects, Wilson Juarez-Aguilarte, who is believed to be a member of the Venezuelan prison gang Tren de Aragua, was apprehended at the northern border in Champlain, New York on June 2nd while attempting to enter Canada. Despite being previously ordered deported by an immigration judge and having his home country refuse to accept deportations from the U.S., Juarez-Aguilarte remains free in the United States.
Another suspect, Gomez Izquiel, pleaded guilty to second-degree assault for his scuffle with New York’s Finest earlier this month and was sentenced to 364 days in jail. However, the Police Benevolent Association criticized the sentence as “not enough.
