The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) worked with law enforcement authorities in Colombia to successfully extradite a suspected high-ranking member of the notorious Venezuelan Tren de Aragua gang. Jose Enrique Martinez-Flores, a 24-year-old Venezuelan national, arrived in Houston, Texas, this week and will face drug distribution and terrorism charges.
According to the United States Department of Justice (DOJ), Martinez-Flores made his initial court appearance on Friday on charges of providing material support to a foreign terrorist organization and significant drug trafficking offenses. Martinez-Flores, known as “Chuqui,” is alleged to be a high-ranking leader of the hyperviolent Venezuelan Tren de Aragua Gang.
In a social media post on X on Thursday, FBI Director Kash Patel referred to Martinez-Flores as “the highest-ranking member of Tren de Aragua (TdA) ever brought to justice.” According to Patel, this is the first incidence where a suspected TdA member has been charged with terrorism related crimes and been extradited to face justice in the United States, saying “history made pursuant to President Trump’s executive order last summer designating Trend de Aragua as an FTO (Foreign Terrorist Organization).”
Martinez-Flores, based in Bogotá, Colombia, is believed to be part of the inner circle of senior Tren de Aragua leadership. Authorities in the South American country arrested the suspect more than a year ago pursuant to a provisional arrest warrant issued at the United States’ request.
According to the allegations facing Martinez-Flores, he is charged with providing material aid and support to the gang in the form of personnel (including himself) and services. The indictment against the suspect alleges he is part of an international drug distribution conspiracy based on the distribution of five kilograms of cocaine or more in Colombia, later intended for distribution in the United States. The allegations assert the proceeds were intended to benefit the gang.
A federal grand jury in Houston returned a second superseding indictment against several other suspected leaders of Tren de Aragua in December 2025, Breitbart Texas’s Bob Price reported. Those indicted include 48-year-old Yohan Jose Romero, also known as “Johan Petrica;” 45-year-old Juan Gabriel Rivas Nunez, also known as “Juancho;” and 38-year-old Giovanni Vicente Mosquera Serrano, also known as “El Viejo. Each is suspected of conspiring to provide and providing material support to the violent Venezuelan gang. Mosquera Serrano is also a named co-conspirator in the international drug distribution allegations against Martinez-Flores.
If convicted, Martinez-Flores faces a maximum penalty of life in prison and a $10 million fine.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Casey N. MacDonald and Anibal J. Alaniz for the Southern District of Texas are prosecuting the case along with Deputy Director David C. Smith and Trial Attorneys James Keller and Kelly McGann of Joint Task Force Vulcan (JTFV).
Task Force Vulcan was created by the DOJ to eradicate the Salvadoran Mara Salvatrucha MS-13 gang in 2019. In February 2025, the Attorney General directed the task force to also target the Tren de Aragua gang. The task force is comprised of numerous U.S. Attorney’s Offices throughout the United States and counts federal law enforcement agencies, including the FBI, DEA, ICE, BATF, USMS, and CBP, as partners.
According to the Department of Justice, assistance from authorities inside Colombia made the extradition possible and included the Colombian National Police, the Colombian Attorney General’s Office, the Justice Department’s Office of the Judicial Attaché in Bogotá, Colombia, and the Office of International Affairs.
Randy Clark is a 32-year veteran of the United States Border Patrol. Before his retirement, he served as the Division Chief for Law Enforcement Operations, directing operations for nine Border Patrol Stations within the Del Rio, Texas, Sector. Follow him on X (formerly Twitter) @RandyClarkBBTX.