At least two of those accused of the brutal beating of two police officers in Times Square have been identified as alleged members of a notorious Venezuelan gang.
Wilson Juarez, 21, and Kelvin Servita-Arocha, 19, have been charged with the attack that occurred last month.
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officials have since confirmed that the two men allegedly belong to the Tren de Aragua gang.
Spokeswoman Marie Ferguson said the new york post‘Both non-citizens have been identified as members of the transnational criminal organization Tren de Aragua.’
Juarez and Arocha were detained by officers inside a Bronx apartment after police executed a warrant for another migrant wanted in connection with the attack.
Wilson Juárez, right, and Kelvin Servita-Arocha, left, have been charged with the attack that occurred last month.
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officials have since confirmed that the two men allegedly belong to the Tren de Aragua gang, photographed in a prison raid in September.
Arocha was arrested on an ICE warrant and his custody status will be reevaluated.
Juárez was detained thanks to a deportation order from a judge in El Paso, Texas, issued a year ago, according to the Post.
Earlier this month, a top FBI agent said Tren De Aragua could join forces with one of Latin America’s most feared armed groups in New York City.
Special Agent John Morales said the agency is concerned the gang could be linked to the notorious MS-13.
“While these gangs would not normally mix, it will always be a concern as the (Tren de Aragua) grows in strength and establishes a foothold,” Morales said.
“We are currently working with our local law enforcement partners and sharing intelligence to stop the growth of the Aragua Train.”
The Aragua Train is less known than the Mexican cartels or the Mara Salvatrucha, commonly known as MS-13, which was born in a Los Angeles prison in the 1980s.
The gang has been allowed to prosper under Nicolás Maduro’s regime in Venezuela, expanding to Colombia, Peru, Brazil and Chile.
A transgender sex worker in Lima, the Peruvian capital, was filmed in February 2023 pleading for her life before gang members shot her at point-blank range.
The Aragua Train pool that was located next to a children’s play area
The Aragua Train was moving into the neighborhood and they wanted to replace the local prostitutes with Venezuelan women.
Six people were killed in one week and 18 were shot in the feet as a warning to stop walking the streets. Two dozen more were murdered in 2023 and 35 more are missing.
The Border Patrol detained at least 41 members of the Aragua Train who were trying to cross the border between October 2022 and September 2023.
The name, which emerged in 2012, means ‘Aragua Train’, in reference to a union of railway workers in the Aragua state in Venezuela.
In September, Venezuelan authorities raided the Tocorón Penitentiary, the gang’s de facto headquarters.
The two officers involved in the incident, Lieutenant Ben Kurian and Officer Zunxu Tian, are said to have suffered lacerations, bruises and considerable shoulder pain.
The two are among eight individuals who allegedly attacked two New York police officers in Times Square last month, seen here.
The raid made headlines around the world due to images showing the luxury in which the prisoners lived.
Within the walls of Tocorón, Tren de Aragua had built a zoo, with ocelots, lions and crocodiles; a pool; a playground; a baseball stadium with bleachers; restaurants; and a nightclub, called Tokyo.
Arocha and Juárez are two of eight immigrant suspects who are said to have attacked the two police officers in Times Square.
The two officers involved in the incident, Lieutenant Ben Kurian and Officer Zunxu Tian, are said to have suffered lacerations, bruises and significant shoulder pain.
Five of the suspects, including Juárez and Arocha, were released without bail; The others were Yorman Reverón, 24, Jhoan Borada, 22, and Darwin Andrés Gómez-Izquiel, 19.
All had been charged with assault on a police officer and obstruction of a government investigation.
On Wednesday, Darwin Andrés Gómez-Izquiel, who had been released on bail after the fight, was allegedly caught shoplifting and sent to Rikers Island.
Police say the teen was seen with three other suspects on Tuesday attempting to steal about $608 worth of items from a Macy’s store in Queens.
Darwin Andrés Gómez (left) and Kelvin Yorman Reverón were released without bail, Gómez was arrested and taken to Rikers earlier this week for robbery.
Jhoan Boada, 22, was arrested in connection with the attack and was photographed leaving the courthouse with his middle finger raised toward reporters. He was not charged Thursday.
A sixth suspect, Yohenry Brito, 24, was arraigned in Manhattan criminal court on Thursday and is the only one of the suspects being held on bail.
In court Tuesday, Yohenry Brito, 24, was also released on bail after an activist priest posted $15,000 in bail money.
He was released from jail after Good Shepherd Lutheran Church in Brooklyn posted his bail, said Pastor Juan Ruiz.
“Our church is basically a sanctuary,” he told the New York Post. “We assume people are innocent until proven guilty.”
Brito’s bail was set by the district attorney at $15,000 cash or $50,000 when the altercation allegedly began and he had two pending misdemeanor cases.
There were reports that four of the suspects had fled New York to California after being released on bail.
But the Manhattan district attorney’s office said Wednesday that two of them, Juarez and Arocha, were arrested at the same location as Madris on Tuesday.
Ulises Bohórquez, 21, was the eighth suspect arrested in connection with the attack. He could barely keep his eyes open before appearing in court Thursday.
Another suspect, Yarwuin Madris, 18, was arrested, charged and held without bail following an arraignment on assault charges this week.
In court Thursday, suspect Ulises Bohórquez, 21, pleaded not guilty during a hearing on second-degree assault charges after being detained by police.
Bohórquez, handcuffed and dressed in a black hoodie, black coat and dark gray jeans, spoke only to plead guilty and listened to the proceedings through a Spanish interpreter as tears were wiped from his face.
Before the hearing, Bohórquez could be seen nodding and having difficulty keeping his eyes open before the judge took his seat.
Another suspect, Yarwuin Madris, 18, was arrested, charged and held without bail following an arraignment on assault charges this week.
Bragg said there were 12 suspects in total and his office presented evidence to a grand jury on Tuesday.
Police have not released the identities of four other suspects in the attack on New York police officers.