3 Venezuelan Gang Members Charged with Murdering North Texas Man and Kidnapping 2 Children; 1 suspect at large

FARMERS BRANCH, Texas – Three suspected gang members have been arrested in connection with the murder of a man and the kidnapping of two children in Farmers Branch earlier this year.

The suspects were located in Colorado and New Mexico. The fourth remains at large.

Authorities believe both the suspects and the murder victim were members of a Venezuelan street gang involved in ATM theft.

According to the Agricultural Branch Police Department, Tren De Aragua is a Venezuelan gang with which four murder suspects are associated.

Investigators believe four Venezuelan gang members kidnapped 33-year-old Nilzult Petit and his two children, taking them to an apartment in Farmers Branch, where he was shot in the head.

On August 24, the body of 33-year-old Nilzult Petit was found on Valley View Lane in Irving. Officers later found two young children related to Petit wandering along I-35E in Lewisville after their kidnappers released them unharmed.

Petit allegedly worked with the people who killed him as part of a nationwide ATM theft scheme and failed to pay them.

Attorney John Helms is a former federal prosecutor unrelated to this case. He says ATM thefts often target criminals far from their home base.

“Some people will know how to do it. They recruit other people and show them how to do it,” he said. “Then they go to different places around the country, hit some ATMs and then come back. “And that makes it harder to find them if they are attacking ATMs that are very far from where they are based.”

Carlos Luis Zambrano Bolivar, 25, and Jhonata Nahin Toro Gonzalez, 22, were arrested by ICE in Aurora, Colorado, where alleged gang activity has played a huge role in politics.

Ehiker Alexander Morales Mendoza (38) was found and arrested by the United States Department of Homeland Security in Las Cruces, New Mexico.

A fourth suspect, 29-year-old Jhonny Jesus Martinez Serrano, remains at large.

“I haven’t seen a lot of information indicating any significant presence in North Texas beyond a few isolated spots,” Helms said.

According to InSight Crime, a nonprofit that specializes in tracking down organized crime, Tren De Aragua began in a Venezuelan prison and spread to other South American countries in 2018 during migrant smuggling.

InSight Crime further explains: “This rapid expansion has occurred in large part due to the nearly 8 million desperate Venezuelans who have fled their country since 2015 in search of a better life. While the world watched this mass migration and saw a humanitarian crisis, Tren De Aragua saw a business opportunity and took full advantage of it.

“Criminal gangs can use this opportunity to extort funds from them and commit crimes against them,” Helms said.

Tren De Aragua has been linked to a variety of crimes, from sex trafficking to cybercrime.

It is unclear how many gang members are currently operating in the U.S., but InSight Crime says there is no evidence that gang members are coordinating on a national level in the U.S.

The murder suspects also allegedly kidnapped two minor family members of the murdered man, but released the children.

Police have not said exactly what ties these alleged Venezuelan gang members have to North Texas.

The Agriculture Department police did not make anyone available for questioning on Tuesday.

Investigators are asking anyone with information to contact Farmers Branch Police at (972) 919-1406 or [email protected].