Deportation flights to Venezuela will continue following the arrest of the South American country’s former leader Nicolás Maduro, Fox News has learned.
“Flights will not be paused,” a Department of Homeland Security spokesperson said.
During an appearance on “Fox News Sunday,” DHS Secretary Kristi Noem said there are no plans to end the flights, despite the government in Caracas being in a transition phase.
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The Trump administration has focused on deporting criminal illegal immigrants, including members of Venezuela’s Tren de Aragua (TdA) gang, which President Donald Trump last year designated a foreign terrorist organization.
An indictment against Maduro alleges that he worked with narcoterrorists, including TdA and its leader, to distribute cocaine since at least 1999.
“TdA has expanded its criminal network across the Western Hemisphere and established a presence in the United States, including New York,” the indictment said.
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“TdA’s criminal activities include human trafficking and other illegal acts. TdA has developed additional sources of revenue through a range of other criminal activities, including drug trafficking, firearms trafficking, commercial sex trafficking, kidnapping, theft, fraud and extortion. TdA members also commit murder, assault and other violent acts to enforce and further the organization’s criminal activities,” the report continued.
Thousands of Venezuelans living under Temporary Protected Status (TPS) in the United States are facing deportation. Noem ended TPS for Venezuelans last year.
Nicolás Maduro and his wife Cilia Flores are seen in handcuffs after landing on a Manhattan helipad, escorted by heavily armed federal agents as they board an armored car en route to a federal courthouse in Manhattan on January 5 in New York City. (XNY/Star Max/GC Images)
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“Datum Venezuela’s substantial role “While encouraging irregular migration and the clear magnet effect created by Temporary Protected Status, maintaining or expanding TPS for Venezuelan nationals directly undermines the Trump Administration’s efforts to secure our southern border and effectively manage migration,” a DHS spokesperson told Fox News Digital at the time.
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