(Luis Cornelio, Headline USA) Venezuela, a socialist and poverty-stricken Central American country, has experienced its lowest violent death rate since 2001 as it faces a population exodus heading to the U.S., according to a recently resurfaced Bloomberg report.
The Venezuelan Violence Observatory found a decrease to 26.8 violent deaths per 100,000 residents, a significant drop from the 35.3 registered in 2023, Bloomberg reported in December 2023.
Observers attribute this decline to factors such as illegal immigration and the Biden administration’s relaxed border policy. Comparatively, Venezuelan nationals have faced criticism for their contributing role in the U.S.’s rampant crime wave, including murder, attempted murder, violent assault and shoplifting.
Venezuela has its lowest homicide rate in 22 years because their gangs are coming here.
Read that again and let it sink in. pic.twitter.com/cTBJjVhSTN
— End Wokeness (@EndWokeness) February 27, 2024
“Venezuela has its lowest homicide rate in 22 years because their gangs are coming here,” commented “End Wokeness” on Twitter, a page known for its conservative views and criticism of the left. “Read that again and let it sink it.”
On Tuesday, Rep. Troy E. Nehls, R-Texas, a member of the House Freedom Caucus, shared a 2022 letter questioning DHS Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas about initial reports suggesting that Venezuela was releasing violent criminals from prison to send them to the U.S.
“I was right in sending this letter,” Nehls wrote on Twitter. “In the past week alone, we’ve seen the tragic consequences of releasing Venezuelan nationals into the country. It’s time to put Americans first—not violent Venezuelans.”
In 2022, I led a letter to Secretary Mayorkas regarding a report about Venezuela releasing criminals from prison early and pushing them to head to the US.
I was right in sending this letter.
In the past week alone, we’ve seen the tragic consequences of releasing Venezuelan… pic.twitter.com/NEqzY9OedE
— Congressman Troy E. Nehls (@RepTroyNehls) February 27, 2024
Nehls’s comments come in the wake of high-profile criminal cases that sent shivers down Americans’ spines. Most recently, 26-year-old Venezuelan national Jose Antonia Ibarra faces several charges for the murder of Laken Riley, a 22-year-old nursing student in Georgia.
Authorities reported that Ibarra randomly attacked the beloved student before brutally ending her life, with medical examinations determining blunt force trauma as the cause of death.
The Biden administration had released Ibarra into the U.S. under parole. He resided in New York City, where he also had another run-in with law enforcement before making his way to Georgia, where he allegedly committed the brutal murder.
New York City itself has witnessed a rising wave of crime attributed to Venezuelan nationals, as announced by the NYPD earlier this month.
Nations like Venezuela are emptying their prisons of dangerous criminals to send them to America. They are happy to let America’s open border be the solution to their problem.
The tragic murder in Georgia proves that Biden’s border policies are putting our kids in danger.… pic.twitter.com/5qvwTOmSJI
— Kristi Noem (@KristiNoem) February 26, 2024
Fifteen-year-old Venezuelan national Jesus Alejandro Rivas-Figueroa is facing attempted murder charges after shooting a Brazilian tourist and several NYPD officers who pursued him following an alleged shoplifting incident at a Times Square clothing store.
Just weeks earlier, several Venezuelan nationals were charged with the brutal assault of two NYPD officers. Some of these individuals gained national attention after flipping their middle fingers at reporters stationed outside a police precinct.
Franco Alexander Peraza Navas, a 30-year-old Venezuelan national currently in custody for his role in a violent gang, told investigators that the criminal network was “bigger” than him. “In a million years, I never thought you’d catch me,” Navas reportedly said. “I’ve been going to Miami every three weeks. And it’s much bigger than me.”
Unlike most nationals in South and Central America, Venezuelans enjoy Temporary Protected Status (TPS), allowing them to stay in the U.S. due to concerns about socialism in their home country. However, sentiment towards Venezuelans has soured in recent years as they flood into the U.S. in unprecedented numbers.
