Suspected member of a feared Venezuelan gang tracked down by Staten Island police

STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. — A suspected member of a transnational criminal organization was arrested by federal authorities last week on Staten Island, according to federal authorities.

Javier Jose Albornoz Marchan, 22, was taken into custody by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) on Sept. 28, according to a news release sent Thursday from ICE’s New York Field Office for Enforcement and Removal Operations.

Marchan is described by authorities as a member of the Tren de Aragua, a Venezuela-based gang with a reported high level of violence that has recently drawn the attention of local, state and federal officials across the United States

Crossing the Texas Border: Feds

On September 22, 2022, U.S. Border Patrol encountered Marchan near EL Paso, Texas, according to federal officials.

Due to prison capacity at the Central Processing Center in El Paso, Texas, he was released to the United States as an alternative to incarceration and on the condition of parole. He never reported to ERO for processing, the press release continues.

He was later arrested in Texas and then again in New Jersey for theft and possession of burglary tools. Before he finally made his way to New York.

Weapons, drugs on school grounds

On March 27, the NYPD arrested Marchan on charges of criminal possession of a loaded firearm on school grounds, possession of a controlled substance with intent to sell and injury to a child under 17.

He was part of it Eight non-citizens were arrested that day. The group reportedly occupied a residential area in the Bronx, where police seized weapons and drugs.

The Bronx County Superior Court convicted Marchan of criminal possession of a firearm and sentenced him to six months in prison.

According to an ICE spokeswoman, the New York City Department of Corrections at Rikers Island released Marchan after he served his sentence, despite the federal government’s use of an active detainer.

Alleged threats against law enforcement

On September 27, the FBI New York ERO Safe Streets Task Force notified New York City of Marchan’s possible threats to local law enforcement and requested assistance in locating and apprehending him.

He was taken to the ERO office in New York City for processing and remained held without bail pending deportation proceedings, federal officials said.

ERO’s mission is, among other things, to eliminate threats to public safety involving convicted criminal non-citizens and gang members who have violated U.S. immigration laws.

Cases involving noncitizens subject to removal proceedings are heard by federal immigration judges in immigration courts administered by the appropriate agencyExecutive Office of Immigration Review.