On December 4, 2025, the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) took a dramatic step by imposing sanctions on Venezuelan actress, model, and DJ Jimena Romina Araya Navarro—better known by her stage name, Rosita. The move, which has sent ripples through both the entertainment world and international law enforcement circles, stems from Rosita’s alleged involvement in supporting the notorious Tren de Aragua (TdA) criminal organization, a group that U.S. officials have recently classified as a terrorist organization.
Rosita’s journey to this moment is a tale that weaves together stardom, scandal, and crime. Once a household name in Venezuela for her roles in comedy shows like A Qué Te Ríes and telenovelas such as El Cuerpo del Deseo, she later reinvented herself as a DJ, performing in nightclubs across Venezuela, Colombia, and beyond. With over 3.5 million Instagram followers, her celebrity status has long been intertwined with controversy—especially since 2012, when she was investigated by Venezuelan authorities for allegedly helping TdA leader Héctor Rusthenford Guerrero Flores, known as Niño Guerrero, escape from Tocorón prison. Although she denied any connection and was released without charges, her public image suffered a severe blow, prompting her shift from television to the DJ booth.
According to the U.S. Treasury Department, Rosita’s involvement with Tren de Aragua runs deep. OFAC accuses her of being a linchpin in an international entertainment network that laundered money and provided material support to the gang. "Rosita performs as a DJ in various nightclubs around Colombia. A portion of the revenue generated during her performances and events is remitted to TdA leadership," the agency specified in its statement, as reported by Breitbart. Among the venues implicated is the Maiquetía VIP Bar Restaurant in Bogotá, owned by her former bodyguard and manager, Eryk Manuel Landaeta Hernandez. Hernandez, who was arrested by Colombian authorities in October 2024, is alleged to have organized events featuring international artists and DJs, including Rosita, where narcotics were sold for the benefit of TdA and the proceeds laundered through various channels.
Rosita’s business interests extend beyond the DJ booth. She is listed as both a shareholder and the president of Global Import Solutions S.A., a Venezuela-based company, which authorities believe played a role in the gang’s financial operations. The U.S. government asserts that these entertainment and business ventures were used as fronts to launder money generated from extortion, drug trafficking, and other crimes attributed to the group.
OFAC’s sanctions freeze any of Rosita’s assets under U.S. jurisdiction and prohibit U.S. individuals and companies from engaging in transactions with her. While the sanctions do not amount to a criminal conviction, they place her on an international watch list and could severely impact her business dealings, artistic contracts, and freedom of movement. As noted by Latin Times, Rosita has yet to publicly respond to the accusations, and no legal proceedings have been opened against her in the United States.
The U.S. government’s action against Rosita is part of a broader crackdown on Tren de Aragua and its alleged collaborators. The group, which originated in Venezuela’s prison system, has grown into one of the country’s most powerful criminal organizations, with operations spanning extortion, migrant smuggling, human trafficking, kidnapping, and territorial control both within prisons and in communities across South America. In February 2025, the U.S. State Department officially designated Tren de Aragua as a foreign terrorist organization, highlighting the group’s role in narcotrafficking and human smuggling, which Secretary of the Treasury Scott Bessent described as "a grave threat to our nation."
Scott Bessent, speaking on behalf of the Treasury, declared, "Under President Trump, barbaric terrorist cartels can no longer operate with impunity across our borders. The Tren de Aragua network’s narco-trafficking and human smuggling operations have long posed a grave threat to our nation. At the direction of President Trump, we will continue to use every tool to cut off these terrorists from the U.S. and global financial system and keep American citizens safe." The Trump administration has also targeted Tren de Aragua members in the United States, seeking to deport them to Venezuela and stymie the cartel’s influence north of the border.
Rosita’s personal life has long been a subject of fascination and tabloid speculation in Venezuela. Beyond her alleged romantic ties to Niño Guerrero, she has been linked to other high-profile criminals. She reportedly had a relationship with Carlos Rafael Galíndez ("Carlos Breaker"), whose dismembered body was found on a Caracas highway in 2015, and with Luidig “Dead Face” Ochoa, an ex-convict and artist who was shot and killed in 2014 during an attempted motorcycle theft. Venezuelan entertainment outlets dubbed her "The Black Widow of Aragua" in 2015, reflecting the tragic fates of her former partners.
The U.S. Treasury’s action has not gone unnoticed by international partners. The Mexican Finance Secretariat announced coordination with the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration to track Rosita’s financial activities in Mexico, with the possibility of adding her to the country’s List of Blocked Persons and issuing alerts to the financial sector. This demonstrates the ripple effect such sanctions can have, extending beyond U.S. borders and into the international financial system.
Meanwhile, the fate of Niño Guerrero remains a mystery. After his recapture in 2013, Guerrero turned Tocorón prison into a fortress and the de facto headquarters of Tren de Aragua, complete with amenities ranging from a zoo and casino to a cryptocurrency farm. However, his whereabouts have been unknown since Venezuelan authorities raided the prison in September 2023. The United States currently offers a $5 million reward for information leading to his arrest, underscoring the high stakes involved in dismantling the gang’s leadership.
The inclusion of a high-profile entertainer like Rosita in the sanctions list illustrates the U.S. government’s view of Tren de Aragua’s far-reaching support network. As the international community watches closely, the case underscores the increasingly blurred lines between celebrity culture and organized crime in parts of Latin America. Whether the sanctions will significantly disrupt the gang’s operations or simply drive them further underground remains to be seen, but for now, the spotlight is firmly fixed on Rosita and her alleged role in one of the region’s most dangerous criminal enterprises.
As the dust settles from this latest round of sanctions, the world waits to see how Venezuelan authorities and the broader entertainment industry will respond—and what new details may emerge about the shadowy intersections of fame and infamy.
