Is Latin American-style gangsterism gaining a foothold in the US? There are troubling signs of it, said Collin Pruett in The American Conservative. Visiting Texas's border with Mexico last year, I found a "population under siege, overstretched police", and Mexican cartels smuggling migrants and drugs with impunity.
And the problem seems to be spreading. In April, a Native American tribal leader from Montana cancelled his plans to testify before Congress, citing death threats from the Sinaloa cartel. And the past fortnight has brought reports of a Venezuelan gang seizing control of an apartment complex in Aurora, a suburb of Denver, Colorado. "The brazen nature of the takeover, common in Latin America but unprecedented in the US, alarmed local citizens." Videos from residents showed men with semi-automatic weapons barging into apartments. There have been reports of violent assaults, threats of murder, extortion, and child prostitution.
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Others have blown the story out of proportion for political reasons, or out of simple anti-immigrant prejudice. The fact is, the Denver region has always had some gang activity. According to the US Justice Department, prominent local gangs include the Bloods, Crips, Sureños 13, North Side Mafia and Gangster Disciples. "The addition of the Tren de Aragua gang to the mix is a dangerous complication, but not a cause for panic."
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