Assistant Chief of the Detective Bureau for the New York Police Department, Jason Savino, said that young, dangerous members of the Venezuelan street gang Tren de Aragua are not really getting in trouble for their crimes in New York City.
In an interview with WNYW on Tuesday, Savino said that the international gang is very active in and around Times Square, especially near the old Roosevelt Hotel which has been turned into a shelter for immigrants. He told them to be careful because the dangerous group has even started to recruit kids.
“It came about because of bail reform.”
According to Savino, the police know that the group has a lot of guns because photos shared online by people who are thought to be in the gang show this.
His words for TDA were “tremendously brazen” and “absolutely ruthless.”
“Individuals … have committed many different crimes with essentially no repercussions,” Savino said to WNYW.
The assistant head said that the group began as a robbery crew in the New York City area.
“Twenty people arrested for upwards of 50 robberies,” said Savino. “And out of those 20 people, every one of them is back on the streets today.”
Savino says that the young gang members are not getting in trouble because of their age and changes to bail laws.
As the gang has become more well-known in the city, it has become easier for new members to join, he said.
Savino said of TDA’s efforts to hire people, “It used to be kind of all over the place. But now we are seeing that structure where there is actually kick-ups where they are recruiting very young members — as young as 11, and they have been involved with robberies as young as eight years old.”
The TDA subgroup in Times Square, which calls itself “Little Devils on 42nd Street,” has started a fued with the Latin Kings, one of the most famous gangs in the city. This makes Savino very worried that there will soon be a gang war.
