‘Larry Changa’, leader and co-founder of the Aragua Train, captured in Colombia

In the late 2000s, a criminal pact was hatched at the Tocorón Penitentiary Center in the state of Aragua, in north-central Venezuela, giving rise to a transnational organization that would spread across several Latin American countries: the Tren de Aragua. The founders of the mega-gang were prisoners Héctor Guerrero, alias Warrior Child; Johan Jose Romero, known as Johan Petricaand Larry Amaury Alvarez Nunez, or Larry Changa. One of those three heads was captured on Monday, July 1. The Colombian police arrested Changa in Circasia, a municipality located in the coffee-growing department of Quindío.

Changa was wanted by Venezuela and Chile for the crimes of terrorism, financing of terrorism, arms and ammunition trafficking, aggravated extortion, kidnapping, money laundering and criminal association. In total, he was wanted in 196 countries, and had two Interpol red notices, which allowed the Colombian authorities to proceed with his capture. At the time of the raid, he tried to escape, and a chase began by the personnel of the DIJIN —the Criminal Investigation Directorate and Interpol— and the commandos who were in the operation, which culminated in his arrest. The president himself, Gustavo Petro, reported on his capture on his X account.

Alias Larry Changa would have arrived in Colombia in 2022, according to intelligence information. He obtained false documents, “which allowed him to go unnoticed and to connect with civil society through different businesses established in the coffee-growing region,” says a statement released by the Police. Meanwhile, he was organizing the criminal strategy for the territorial expansion of the Aragua Train in Colombian territory.

Changa, 46, is from the Venezuelan city of Maracay, capital of the state of Aragua, where he worked as a laborer. His criminal history can be traced back to 2007, when he was prosecuted for intentional homicide and aggravated robbery, and sentenced to more than 17 years in prison. In prison he met aliases Warrior Child already Johan Petrica, with whom they consolidated a criminal alliance between 2007 and 2013. Although several branches of the Tren de Aragua have been created, they are the ones who have maintained power since then. According to the book The Aragua Train. The gang that revolutionized organized crime in Latin America, written by According to Venezuelan journalist Ronna Rísquez, this mega-gang is characterized by a centralized command. “The group that was in Tocorón coordinated practically everything (…) The operation ended up being centralized in these three leaders,” the text states.

Álvarez escaped from prison in 2015, and in 2018 he entered Chile, where he operated under orders from Warrior Child. He settled in the city of Santiago with his partner, where he allegedly opened legal businesses that served as a front for the organization’s money. The Tren de Aragua specializes in crimes such as illegal mining, human trafficking, sexual exploitation of migrants, torture and murder. Its presence has spread throughout Latin America, especially to Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia, and Chile, to the point of becoming a regional problem. There are also indications that they were looking to expand their structure to enter Spain.

Larry Changa will be placed at the disposal of the Colombian Prosecutor’s Office through the Directorate of International Affairs, and it is expected that in the next five days receive the documentation through diplomatic channels to issue the arrest warrant for extradition purposes. It has not yet been specified to which country he would be extradited.

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