Authorities have warned that Tren de Aragua, a gang of illegal immigrants from Venezuela, has reportedly taken control of parts of Aurora, Colorado.
On Wednesday, Raws Alerts shared a video of the gang allegedly taking control of an apartment complex in Aurora, which is a suburb of Denver. Raws Alerts tweeted, “An armed gang of illegal immigrants from Venezuela has reportedly taken full control of an apartment complex and parts of the town of Aurora.”
In an interview with Fox News, Aurora City Councilwoman Danielle Jurinsky described the situation in the Denver suburb, saying, “”Residents tell me they feel like they are living in a third world country at this point.”
According to Jurinsky, Tren de Aragua is taking over the city by going “block by block” and “apartment complex by apartment complex.” She added, “I have heard too many stories from too many property owners, business owners, and residents, to think that this is anything other than a complete gang takeover in parts of our city.”
Jurinsky told Fox News that she believes the gang is also involved in sex trafficking in the city, while a city resident told the outlet that the gang uses Aurora’s apartment complexes for drug dealing.
“This is organized. They patrol the property with guns visibly, like they’re not trying to hide them,” the anonymous resident said. “There’s no repercussion. These are ghosts.”
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In response to the reports of Aurora being taken over by the illegal immigrant gang from Venezuela, the Aurora Police Department released a statement on X, formerly Twitter, explaining that the department was “aware that components of TdA are operating in Aurora,” but that “reports of TdA influence in Aurora are isolated.”
The police department also noted that the city had created a special task force that is working with local, state, and federal partners to “specifically address concerns about Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua (TdA) and other criminal activity affecting migrant communities.”
According to The New York Post, Tren de Aragua is a prison gang based in Venezuela that has been sending gang members across the southern border between the United States and Mexico for years and recruiting members from migrant communities in the U.S., especially in Denver, New York, and Chicago.
Denver 7 reported that the Denver Police Department has confirmed members of the Tren de Aragua gang “are tied to crimes in the area.” However, the department told Denver 7 that it was “not aware of any apartment buildings being ‘taken over’ by this gang in Denver.”
