Reports: Tren de Aragua Members Linked to Oregon ‘Rehab’ Funding Scandal After Brutal Abduction
Deep Search
New investigative reports have exposed a disturbing link between a brutal kidnapping case and a massive potential Medicaid fraud scheme in Oregon. Tren de Aragua gang members accused of abducting and torturing a woman in early 2025 were reportedly living in a Lake Oswego home that was receiving millions in taxpayer funding as a registered “drug rehab facility.”
The suspects, identified as Venezuelan nationals Kevin Daniel Sanabria-Ojeda and Alexander Moises Arnaez-Gutierrez, are charged with abducting a woman from her apartment complex in Burien, Washington. Court documents reveal a harrowing sequence of events where the men allegedly forced the victim into a vehicle, shot her, and used a power drill on her hand to extract her debit card PINs before leaving her for dead in a remote area of Kittitas County.
While the violent crime occurred across the state line in Washington, the focus has shifted to the suspects’ residence in Oregon. The men were living in a home on Bonita Road in Lake Oswego, an affluent suburb of Portland. This property was operated by “Uplifting Journey LLC,” a company that billed the Oregon Health Authority (OHA) for addiction recovery services. State records indicate that Uplifting Journey LLC received over $2.3 million in Medicaid reimbursements in less than a year, with payments continuing even after the violent crimes were committed.
Investigative reporting has further alleged that the operators of this facility, including an individual using the name “Julius Maximo,” may be connected to a broader international money laundering ring. Reports suggest ties between these operators and a $60 million Medicaid fraud network in Arizona, which authorities allege funneled stolen public funds to Rwanda.
Objections
While the tweet and subsequent viral discussions frame this as “Oregon in the current year,” it is important to clarify the timeline and geography of the events. The abduction and torture incident took place in January 2025, not 2026, and the crime itself occurred in Washington state, not Oregon. The “current” aspect of the story relates to the emerging details regarding the Medicaid funding and the ongoing fallout from the investigation into how alleged gang members were housed in a state-funded facility.
Additionally, while the $2.3 million figure for the Oregon facility is documented in state records, the $60 million figure and the “laundering through Rwanda” claim appear to stem from parallel investigations into a linked fraud ring in Arizona. Authorities have not yet publicly confirmed a direct transfer of the specific Oregon funds to Rwanda, though the connection between the business owners is a subject of active scrutiny.
Background Info
Tren de Aragua is a transnational criminal organization that originated in the Tocorón prison in Venezuela. The gang has expanded its operations throughout South America and, more recently, into the United States, where it has been linked to human trafficking, drug distribution, and violent crimes.
The group’s presence in Oregon has become a flashpoint for local and federal law enforcement. In January 2026, just prior to the resurfacing of the Lake Oswego rehab story, a separate incident occurred in Portland where a U.S. Customs and Border Protection agent shot two alleged Tren de Aragua associates during a traffic stop. The Department of Homeland Security identified the individuals as being linked to the gang, though local prosecutors and family members have contested some of these characterizations.
The revelation that a state-funded entity may have inadvertently housed and supported members of a violent international gang has triggered calls for audits of the Oregon Health Authority’s vetting processes for behavioral health providers.
oregonfoundation.org
govdelivery.com
dailysignal.com
substack.com
substack.com
realclearinvestigations.com
substack.com
pbs.org
youtube.com
