DENVER — A man with possible Tren de Aragua (TdA) ties was arrested after allegedly committing drug and firearm-related crimes in Denver, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Colorado announced on Friday afternoon.
Jose Manuel Guerra-Caballero, 37, of Venezuela was recently arrested on one count of conspiracy to distribute more than 500 grams of a substance containing methamphetamine and one count of possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime, the U.S. Attorney’s Office said. The crimes allegedly happened in Denver. He was arrested in Indiana.
The arrest affidavit obtained by Denver7 Investigates details a months-long investigation, beginning in Oct. 2024. The investigation, led by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) and Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), involved a sting operation with undercover agents and a paid, confidential informant.
According to the document, undercover agents organized a total of six undercover purchases of guns, costing thousands of dollars, and a drug known as "Tusi," which can be a combination of cocaine and methamphetamine. The complaint states these exchanges took place at an undercover location, but cites the Ivy Crossing Apartments on South Quebec Street in Denver as the site of alleged criminal activity.
A co-conspirator described Guerra-Caballero as a member of TdA. Guerra-Caballero is accused of conspiring with six other people to provide armed protection for a transaction that involved 10 pounds of methamphetamine, the complaint reads.
"Guerra-Caballero arranged the protection remotely and confirmed over the phone that his co-conspirators were armed and ready to serve in the operation," the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Colorado said in a press release.
The deal was a ruse created by undercover ATF agents. Agents started this operation after Guerra-Caballero, and people associated with him, offered their services "for various illegal and violent activities," the U.S. Attorney's Office said. The undercover federal agents purchased multiple firearms, which Guerra-Caballero believed they would bring illegally to Mexico.
The purchases began in mid-November and continued up until Wednesday.
According to the affidavit, Guerra-Caballero told undercover agents he could "purchase girls" from Mexico and bring them to Denver, allegedly showing an agent videos on his phone of young-looking girls holding weapons.
Once the staged narcotics transaction was complete, the undercover agents gave a "pre-planned arrest signal," and an ATF arrest team took six suspects into custody. U.S. Immigration Customs and Enforcement (ICE) confirmed that all six were unlawfully in the country and were from Venezuela.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office in the District of Colorado is handling Guerra-Caballero's prosecution.
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