Feds Bust Violent Migrant Gang Running AOC’s Crime-Plagued ‘Red Light’ District

A notorious migrant gang that turned a major Queens commercial corridor into a war zone of crime, extortion, and violence has been brought down in a massive federal takedown and it happened right under the nose of Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez.

Eight members of the 18th Street Gang, a brutal transnational crime syndicate, were charged in a sweeping indictment this month after federal and local officials revealed the extent of their criminal reign along Roosevelt Avenue a crime-infested strip in AOC’s district that's become known as New York’s unofficial “Red Light district.”

• Seven of the eight suspects are illegal immigrants, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office.

• The gang operated a multi-layered criminal enterprise involving stabbings, beatings, drug trafficking, fake passports, counterfeit money, and firearm trafficking.

• Roosevelt Avenue has long been plagued by crime, but locals say it has deteriorated rapidly due to the migrant crisis and weak enforcement.

“These criminals unleashed terror onto Queens communities,” said Queens DA Melinda Katz. Their methods? Beatings with tequila bottles, bike locks, and metal chairs. One man was stabbed in the lung; another had his face permanently damaged. Their objective? Total control over Roosevelt Avenue.

The gang filled the power vacuum left after law enforcement cracked down on other groups like Venezuela's Tren de Aragua. The “54 Tiny Locos” clique of the 18th Street Gang immediately took control, tagging the area with graffiti, extorting businesses, and turning neighborhoods into third-world flea markets, complete with prostitution, stolen goods, and black-market activity all while Democrat leaders looked the other way.

Fox News Digital recently documented dozens of women openly soliciting sex just blocks from where Ocasio-Cortez hosted a town hall.

And while Rep. Grace Meng praised law enforcement for the bust, AOC’s office stayed silent. No statement. No comment. No leadership.

This is the result of progressive policies that invite chaos: sanctuary city protections, lax immigration enforcement, and soft-on-crime ideologies have opened the floodgates to international gangs, who exploit both the system and the neighborhoods they invade.

Federal agents from the FBI, Homeland Security, ICE, and the Secret Service coordinated the bust after local leaders, like former state Sen. Hiram Monserrate, publicly called for intervention. “Many stood silent we didn’t,” he said.

And yet, even with multiple brothel shutdowns, a 29% drop in crime from Operation Restore Roosevelt, and this high-profile takedown, the core problem remains: illegal immigration is fueling violent crime, and leftist politicians like AOC refuse to take responsibility.

NYC Deputy Mayor for Public Safety Kaz Daughtry admitted the area has been a prostitution hotbed since the 1990s but said the migrant surge has made it exponentially worse.

The question now is whether these arrests will be a turning point or just another temporary fix while the root cause, Democrat-led lawlessness, continues to fester.

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