Venezuelan national accused of claiming control over Arizona community, threatening residents: report
A Venezuelan national accused of threatening Arizona residents at gunpoint while claiming control over part of a Maricopa County community is facing multiple felony charges, including terrorism, authorities said.
Arizona Department of Public Safety investigators allege Javier Enrique Erazo-Zuniga, 27, claimed control over part of Maricopa and threatened residents with deadly weapons in an effort to extort money, according to reporting by InMaricopa and statements from state authorities.
DPS spokesperson Bart Graves told InMaricopa detectives began investigating Erazo-Zuniga in December after receiving information that he was “claiming Hidden Valley in Maricopa as his territory and demanding money from victims.”
Investigators allege Erazo-Zuniga was tied to a series of violent incidents involving residents who were targeted at their homes. In one 2024 incident, authorities say he put a victim in a headlock and held a knife to the person’s neck, leaving a cut. Last month, investigators allege he waited at the end of another victim’s driveway and held the victim at gunpoint.
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During a search of Erazo-Zuniga’s bedroom, detectives recovered a firearm believed to have been used in the December gunpoint incident, Graves said.
Erazo-Zuniga was booked into the Pinal County Jail, where jail records show he remains in custody on a $250,000 secured bond. He was later indicted by a Pinal County grand jury.
Court records obtained by the outlet show the grand jury charged Erazo-Zuniga with aggravated assault involving a firearm, two counts of forgery and two counts of misconduct involving weapons, including possession of handguns while prohibited. Prosecutors allege the aggravated assault charge qualifies as a dangerous felony because it involved the use or threatened exhibition of a firearm.
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DPS has also stated that Erazo-Zuniga is charged with assisting a criminal street gang and terrorism, though those allegations were outlined by the agency rather than detailed in the indictment documents released by the Pinal County Superior Court. Authorities have said additional charges could be forthcoming, potentially at the federal level.
According to a minute entry filed in superior court, Erazo-Zuniga is scheduled to be arraigned Friday.
Graves said investigators believe there may be multiple additional victims, but that some have been afraid to come forward.
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“We encourage them to contact our tip line,” Graves said. DPS asked anyone with information related to the case to call 602-644-5805.
Authorities have not confirmed whether the investigation could expand beyond Maricopa.
The case comes amid heightened national law enforcement scrutiny of Venezuelan criminal groups following a series of high-profile investigations in Colorado in 2024 and 2025.
Federal prosecutors there indicted Venezuelan nationals accused of participating in organized robberies, kidnappings, extortion schemes and firearms offenses tied to the transnational gang Tren de Aragua. While some early claims of gang “takeovers” were later disputed or clarified, authorities have confirmed multiple violent cases involving coordinated criminal activity and armed suspects.
Fox News Digital has reached out to the Arizona Department of Public Safety, Homeland Security Investigations, the Pinal County Attorney’s Office and the FBI for additional information.
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