Eiber Gabriel Sira-Vargas, a 29-year-old man with suspected links to the notorious Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua, faces capital murder and aggravated kidnapping charges in Texas. He is currently held in Bexar County Jail on a $2 million bond. The charges stem from the death of 18-year-old Alexis Jose Vegas, who was found shot multiple times along a San Antonio highway in July, according to the San Antonio Express-News.

Sira-Vargas was previously detained by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and is suspected of weapons trafficking for Tren de Aragua, as reported by Fox News Digital in September. Investigators reportedly connected Sira-Vargas to the murder after looking into a separate alleged robbery.

According to the San Antonio Express-News, an unidentified man who was with Vegas at the time of the incident told police that three armed suspects broke into an apartment on July 1. Both Vegas and the witness were reportedly bound and forced into a vehicle before being driven to a remote location along U.S. 281. There, Sira-Vargas and another suspect allegedly opened fire, killing Vegas and injuring the unidentified man, who played dead until the attackers left.

Tren de Aragua, meaning "train of Aragua," originated in the Tocoron prison in Venezuela's Aragua state between 2013 and 2015. The gang is implicated in a range of violent crimes including murder, rape, extortion, and kidnapping. Texas Governor Greg Abbott designated Tren de Aragua as a foreign terrorist organization in September and initiated a statewide operation targeting the group. Abbott stated that the gang has been active in Texas since at least 2021, when members were arrested for human trafficking.