Venezuelan authorities reported the arrival of a new flight of 175 migrants expelled by the United States, including a gang leader –– the first time Caracas has confirmed a criminal was among the deportees.
US President Donald Trump has launched a crackdown on irregular migrants since coming to power in January, deporting hundreds of people to Latin America that his administration has branded as "gangsters."
Alien Enemies Act was used in the War of 1812, World War I and in World War II between to round up around 120,000 Japanese and Japanese-Americans.
"For the first time, in these flights... someone of weight arrives who has been claimed by the Venezuelan justice system," said Interior Minister Diosdado Cabello on Sunday.
The minister added that the man was "not from Tren de Aragua," referring to the Venezuelan gang that Washington branded a "foreign terrorist organization" and claims many of the deported Venezuelan migrants belong to.
Cabello received the migrants at the Maiquetia International Airport that serves Caracas.
"He belongs to a gang from Trujillo state, the gang... El Cagon," Cabello added, without offering further details on the criminal's identity.
Cabello said that of the migrants received by Venezuela so far, none were members of Tren de Aragua.
Venezuela releases six Americans after immigration-focused meeting between President Maduro and Trump's envoy Richard Grenell in Caracas.
Venezuela and the United States broke off diplomatic relations in 2019, but had a rapprochement in January to agree on deportation flights.
That cooperation was interrupted for a month after Washington cracked down on Venezuela's oil sector, but flights resumed a week ago.
Sunday's flight was the third to land since the resumption.
In total, 918 people have arrived in Venezuela after being deported from the United States. Another 553 migrants have returned from Mexico, although it was unclear whether they were originally deported from US soil.
The US government notified Venezuela that some of the deportees are suspected to be members of criminal gangs.
On Saturday, Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro said that 324 Venezuelan migrants had been sent by the United States to a maximum security prison in El Salvador, adding that no official list had been provided.
According to the United Nations, almost eight million Venezuelans have left their country fleeing an economic crisis that began to show signs of recovery in 2021.
The government claims that more than 1.2 million have returned.
