‘If there’s one, there’s likely to be more’: Tren de Aragua gang member found in South Florida

By Rachael Perry

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    MARTIN COUNTY, Florida (WPBF) — Officials with the Martin County Sheriff’s Office arrested a man they believe to be a member of Venezuela’s Tren de Aragua gang.

WPBF 25 News spoke with Martin County Sheriff John Budensiek, who said the 19-year-old was arrested Monday night after a homeowner reported a suspicious person walking behind their house in Sewall’s Point.

“That involved a homeowner seeing an individual in their backyard walking along the sea wall wearing all black and the homeowner shined a flashlight on them, at which point they ran back to a vehicle which was parked near their house,” Budensiek said.

The homeowner was able to describe the person and the vehicle to deputies who located it soon after. They conducted a traffic stop and found the driver did not have a valid Florida driver’s license.

Using his Venezuelan ID, the Martin County Sheriff’s Office identified the man as Wilker Alejandro Gutierrez Quintero, who it said is in the United States illegally.

They soon learned Quintero is on the FBI’s watch list.

“The FBI and Homeland Security helped us last night with this case and tracked why this individual was on the list. Well, this individual is on the list because they’re part of the Tren de Aragua gang that we’ve been hearing about for quite some time,” Budensiek said.

Budensiek said Quintero admitted to his involvement with the gang but would not tell them what he was doing in the area of Sewall’s Point.

The Tren de Aragua gang originated in Venezuela but has made headlines in the United States for a series of violent offenses along with sex trafficking and drug smuggling.

“These gangs are not afraid of confrontation. So these gangs are doing home invasion robberies, they’re doing high-end burglaries. They’re, again, not afraid of being encountered by homeowners, and they’re not overly afraid of law enforcement,” Budensiek explained.

WPBF 25 News asked Budensiek if he was at all surprised to see a member of the gang in Martin County.

“Not at all. Unfortunately, we see when a trend starts at the border, it makes its way to us inevitably. So we’re not shocked, but we’re paying close attention to the whole thought process. If there’s one, there’s likely to be more,” he said.

Budensiek said while the gang has been prevalent in some cities in the United States for years, they’re starting to branch out.

“They’ve gotten a little brave here in the last few years. A lot of where they’ve been operating traditionally has been in some of these sanctuary cities, but now they have started to branch out, and having one here in Martin County is something we’re definitely paying attention to,” he said.

Investigators with the Martin County Sheriff’s Office are still trying to figure out what he was doing in the area of Sewall’s Point Monday night and if he has connections to any other gang members in the area.

“President Trump has designated that particular gang as a terrorist organization. So we were happy to be able to get our hands on him and put him in our jail here, and then he’ll be removed from our country as soon as the charges run,” Budensiek said.

When it comes to immigration enforcement as a whole, Budensiek wants to reassure people that they are only targeting people who are in the United States illegally with a criminal record.

“We have had several instances now where individuals that are in the country illegally have run from our deputies on traffic stops. They’ve gotten into vehicle pursuits and foot pursuits, and these individuals likely would have been issued a criminal citation and given a court appearance, but now they have guaranteed themselves a trip back to their country of origin by running from us. So do not run from us,” he said.

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