Diego Ibarra, brother of Jose Ibarra, the illegal alien accused of murdering Laken Riley, is likely a member of the Venezuelan Tren de Aragua gang, according to court documents.
Diego Ibarra was detained around the same time as his brother after he showed homicide investigators a counterfeit green card. Reports indicate he used it to secure employment at the university Riley attended.
Previously, Diego Ibarra has been arrested for driving under the influence of alcohol and driving without a license, theft by shoplifting, and failing to appear for fingerprinting. He is known to have crossed the US border at least twice and was involved in a violent attack on a border official during the second crossing. He escaped prosecution by claiming to have epilepsy, however.
Prosecutors have now disclosed they believe he is a member of Tren de Aragua, a violent Venezuelan gang, citing gang-related social media posts and his distinctive tattoos. The gang has begun to make its presence felt in US cities as illegal immigration from Venezuela reaches unprecedented levels under Joe Biden.
Recently, former President Donald Trump warned that Tren de Aragua is partly responsible for the “33,000 assaults, 3,000 robberies, almost 7,000 burglaries, 7,500 weapons offenses, 4,300 sex crimes, 1,600 kidnappings, and 1,700 homicides” linked to illegal aliens detained by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).