Model, DJ linked to violent Tren de Aragua gang leader sanctioned by Trump administration
In a significant move against transnational crime, the Trump administration has sanctioned Jimena Romina Araya Navarro, an actress and model known as Rosita, due to her alleged connections with the Tren de Aragua (TdA), a notorious Venezuelan gang involved in drug trafficking and human smuggling. The U.S. Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) announced the designation on Wednesday, highlighting Navarro’s role in laundering money for the gang and facilitating the escape of Hector Rusthenford Guerrero Flores, a prominent gang leader, from a Venezuelan prison in 2012. Navarro, who boasts millions of followers on social media, reportedly performs at nightclubs in Colombia, with proceeds from her events partially benefiting TdA’s leadership.
The sanctions against Navarro are part of a broader strategy by the Trump administration to dismantle the operations of the TdA, which has been a significant threat to U.S. national security. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent emphasized that under President Trump, the U.S. is committed to preventing these “barbaric terrorist cartels” from operating freely. The administration has also targeted other TdA leaders, including Richard Jose Espinal Quintero and Cheison Royer Guerrero Palma, who are implicated in expanding the gang’s criminal activities into countries like Chile. Additionally, Navarro’s former bodyguard and manager, Eryk Manuel Landaeta Hernandez, has been arrested for allegedly organizing events that facilitated drug sales for TdA and laundering the proceeds.
This crackdown on the TdA aligns with a larger U.S. intelligence assessment indicating that some Venezuelan officials have been complicit in aiding the gang’s infiltration into the United States. In February, the State Department officially designated the TdA a foreign terrorist organization, further escalating the U.S. response to the gang’s operations. The sanctions against Navarro and her associates reflect a concerted effort to disrupt the financial networks that sustain these criminal organizations, aiming to protect American citizens and curb the influence of violent gangs across borders.
An actress and model who moonlights as a DJ and is romantically linked to the leader of the bloodthirsty Venezuelan Tren de Aragua (TdA) transnational gang was sanctioned by the Trump administration on Wednesday.
The Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) announced the designation against Jimena Romina Araya Navarro, also known as Rosita.
Navarro, a Venezuelan model with millions of social media followers, has helped launder money for TdA along with other entertainers, the department said.
She also helped Hector Rusthenford Guerrero Flores, also known as “Niño Guerrero,”
escape from
Tocorón prison in Venezuela in 2012, the agency said.
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“Under President Trump, barbaric terrorist cartels can no longer operate with impunity across our borders. The Tren de Aragua network’s narco-trafficking and human smuggling operations have long posed a grave threat to our nation,” said Secretary of the Treasury Scott Bessent.
“At the direction of President Trump, we will continue to use every tool to cut off these terrorists from the U.S. and global financial system and keep American citizens safe.”
Navarro reportedly performs in nightclubs in Colombia, with a portion of the proceeds from the events going to TdA leadership, the Treasury Department said.
She has also performed at the Bogotá nightclub Maiquetia VIP Bar Restaurant, which is owned by her former bodyguard and manager, Eryk Manuel Landaeta Hernandez. She is additionally a shareholder and the president of a Venezuela-based company, Global Import Solutions S.A.
Hernandez was arrested by
Colombian authorities
in October 2024. He allegedly organized events featuring international artists and DJs, including Navarro, where drugs were sold for TdA and the proceeds were laundered, authorities said.
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Hernandez also allegedly laundered money for Guerrero and sanctioned senior TdA leader Mosquera Serrano.
He owns the creative, arts and entertainment services company Eryk Producciones SAS and reportedly served as the gang’s financial and logistics chief in Colombia.
Additional sanctions were levied against TdA leaders Richard Jose Espinal Quintero, Noe Manases Aponte Cordova, and Asdrubal Rafael Escobar Cabrera and Cheison Royer Guerrero Palma, Niño Guerrero’s half-brother, who was expanding the gang’s activity into Chile.
Kenffersso Jhosue Sevilla Arteaga, known as “El Flipper,” was also sanctioned. He was arrested in Cúcuta, Colombia, in November 2025 and “was involved in extortions, kidnappings, and homicides,” the Treasury Department said.
The Trump administration has targeted TdA members in the United States in an effort to deport them
to Venezuela
.
An April intelligence assessment from the National Intelligence Council said some Venezuelan officials have facilitated the migration of TdA members into the United States.
In February, the gang was designated a foreign terrorist organization by the
State Department
.
