8 Venezuelan illegal aliens with ties to Tren da Aragua are charged with transnational commercial sex enterprise crimes

NASHVILLE – A U.S. Immigration Customs and Enforcement investigation with the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation led to a four-count indictment which was unsealed in the Middle District of Tennessee charging eight defendants, with ties to the Tren da Aragua (TdA) gang, with various offenses stemming from their involvement with a transnational commercial sex enterprise.

“The success of this operation to stop Tren da Aragua operating in our communities is a significant step forward in our ongoing battle against human trafficking and transnational organized crime,” said ICE Homeland Security Investigations Nashville Special Agent in Charge Rana Saoud. “This investigation exemplifies the importance of collaboration among local, state, and federal agencies in ending these crimes in our communities. Human exploitation leaves a trail of suffering in its wake.”

The defendants, Yilibeth del Carmen Rivero-De Caldera, 51, Kleiver Daniel Mota-Rivero, 35, Yuribetzi Del Valle Gomez Machuca, 39, Wilmarys Del Valle Manzano Solorzano, 22, Frankyanna Del Valle Romero-Rivero, 30, Endrik Alexander Morales-Rivero, 25, Jesus Enrique Castillo Rodriguez, 24, Ariannys Beatriz Gutierrez-Carrillo, 24; all of Venezuela, operated an illegal commercial sex and sex trafficking enterprise out of Nashville motels from July 2022 through March 2024, according to court documents.

The defendants facilitated the victims’ arrival into the United States and used online commercial sex websites to post advertisements and internet or cellular communications to conduct illicit criminal activities, according to the indictment.

“This indictment demonstrates our commitment to stop human trafficking whenever and wherever we find it, and to hold those involved accountable” said acting U.S. Attorney for the Middle District of Tennessee Robert E. McGuire. “We are coming after transnational criminal organizations like TdA, but this case shows that we will also do whatever it takes to stop those who would traffic women and girls no matter who is behind their suffering.”

“We will not allow TdA – or any criminal organization – to get a stronghold in Tennessee,” said Tennessee Bureau of Investigations Director David Rausch. “We are thankful for our local, state, and federal partners who joined us in investigating this case, and we stand prepared to continue aggressively investigating human trafficking in our state, holding traffickers and buyers accountable and helping victims take their first steps toward becoming survivors.”

A grand jury in the Middle District of Tennessee previously returned the four-count indictment charging all eight defendants for roles in facilitating the recruiting of young women from impoverished parts of Venezuela and other South and Central American countries, and their transportation across the U.S. southern border and state lines to engage in commercial sex in the Nashville area.

Three of the defendants, Yilibeth del Carmen Rivero-De Caldera, Kleiver Daniel Mota-Rivero, and Yuribetzi Del Valle Gomez Machuca, are additionally charged with sex trafficking conspiracy for conspiring to use force, fraud, and coercion to compel the women into engaging in commercial sex acts for the defendants’ profit that include invoking alleged ties to the Venezuelan gang TdA and its reputation for violence. The indictment further charges defendant Kleiver Daniel Mota-Rivero with one count of possession of a firearm by an illegal alien.

Mother and son defendants Rivero-De Caldera and Mota-Rivero are charged with conspiring to impose a coercive debt scheme upon the victims to compel them to continue engaging in commercial sex acts until the defendants deemed their debts repaid. Defendants Rivero-De Caldera and Mota-Rivero previously were arrested and detained on state charges relating to their conduct.

The defendants face a maximum penalty of life in prison if convicted of conspiracy to commit sex trafficking. Conspiracy to commit interstate transportation for purposes of prostitution carries a maximum penalty of five years in prison, and conspiracy to commit interstate and foreign travel or transportation in aid of racketeering enterprises carries a maximum penalty of five years in prison.

Mota-Rivero also faces a maximum penalty of 15 years in prison if convicted of possession of a firearm by an illegal alien.

In addition to ICE HSI Nashville and TBI, the FBI, the DEA, the Metropolitan Nashville Police Department, Shelbyville Police Department, U.S. Secret Service, and additional federal, state, and local Organized Crime and Drug Enforcement Task Force partners who coordinated related law enforcement operations across multiple jurisdictions assisted in this investigation.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Brooke K. Schiferle for the Middle District of Tennessee and Trial Attorneys Lindsey Roberson and Jessica Arco of the Civil Rights Division’s Human Trafficking Prosecution Unit are prosecuting the case.

To report any information about human trafficking, child sexual abuse, or the trafficking in child sexual abuse material contact the ICE Tip Line at 1-866-347-2423.