Colombia captures a suspected Tren de Aragua gang leader as US security ties deepen

Colombia's President Abelardo de la Espriella made an announcement on Tuesday, Aug. 25, 2026, regarding a joint initiative with Bogota's Mayor Carlos Fernando Galan aimed at enhancing security in the capital city. This effort includes an increased police presence, improved intelligence gathering, advanced technology, and strengthened urban capabilities.

The announcement came on the same day that the U.S. Southern Command reported the capture of a suspected senior leader of the Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua, Luis Saúl Pérez Nieto. The U.S. military hailed the arrest as a result of the growing military cooperation between the two historically close allies. Pérez Nieto, known by aliases "Páez" and "Nairobi," was apprehended in an operation involving Colombian police and the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA).

Colombian authorities accused him of leading the expansion of Tren de Aragua in Peru while coordinating drug and arms trafficking across the continent. The gang, which started as a prison group from Venezuela's Tocorón penitentiary, has transformed into a transnational criminal organization. Pérez Nieto was captured on Thursday, marking the beginning of deeper joint efforts against organized crime between Colombia and the U.S., under de la Espriella's conservative presidency.

The U.S. Southern Command emphasized that "narco-terrorists have no safe haven in our hemisphere," underscoring the joint commitment to dismantle these criminal networks and safeguard their respective nations.