A Venezuelan illegal alien and accused leader of the dangerous Tren de Aragua gang was apprehended in Los Angeles County last week, the Trump administration confirmed to Fox News on Monday.
Yonaiker Gallegos, also known as Yoniaker(sic) Rafel Martinez-Ramos, was already in local detention on misdemeanor counts of writing blank checks and possessing a fraudulent official ID.
Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) located him on April 22, according to a senior Trump administration official. After receiving information regarding the goods in Martinez-Ramos’ possession when he was apprehended by local authorities, agents determined that he was most likely using a false identity.
He was conclusively identified as Gallegos on April 23 after HSI’s National Gang Unit got photos of Martinez-Ramos’ tattoos and jail records.
Analysts were also able to discover his social media posts and images, confirming his true identity as Yonaiker Gallegos using facial recognition technology, according to the official.
According to the senior official, he was arrested on April 25 for Title 8 (immigration) breaches and has been “identified as a leader of TDA based in California.”
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) verified Gallegos’ arrest.
HSI Los Angeles worked with state and municipal authorities to place Gallegos in federal detention on immigration-related crimes.
