Police deny Venezuelan gang took over run-down suburban Denver apartment complex

DENVER (AP) — Police in the Denver suburb of Aurora say a Venezuelan street gang with a small presence in the city did not take over a run-down apartment complex — even though those accusations are gaining traction among conservatives and were amplified by former President Donald Trump at a Fox News town hall Wednesday, where he said Venezuelans are “taking over the whole city.”

The baseless accusations gained momentum after a video emerged last month from a resident of the complex showing armed men knocking on the door of an apartment building, fueling fears that the six-building complex is controlled by the Tren de Aragua gang.

Aurora is a diverse city that has long struggled with crime and gangs. Police said they have linked 10 people to Tren de Aragua so far and arrested six of them, including suspects in an attempted murder in July.

But during a visit to the apartments where the gunmen were filmed, Aurora Interim Police Chief Heather Morris said the gang members had not taken over the building and were not collecting rent. The comments came after Aurora Mayor Mike Coffman said “criminal elements” had taken over some unspecified buildings and were extorting money from residents.

Coffman wrote in a Facebook post that the property manager at CBZ Management told him that tenants were being forced to pay rent to gang members.

After residents held a news conference to speak out against the allegations, Coffman, a Republican and former congressman, admitted he was “not sure where the truth is in all of this.” This Week’s Interview with Denver7 Coffman, a television spokesperson, said the narrative that Aurora is dangerous is untrue and detrimental to the economic health of the rapidly growing city of more than 400,000 people.

Coffman was not available Thursday to discuss the situation.

Trump has sought to capitalize on immigration concerns as he seeks a second term in November. During a Wednesday night event, he repeated his call for mass deportations after blowing the case for gang violence in Aurora.

“Look at Aurora, Colorado, where the Venezuelans are taking over the entire city, taking over buildings, the entire city,” Trump said. “You saw that recently, they were breaking down doors and taking over people’s homes.”

The nearly 1 million Venezuelan migrants who have arrived in the U.S. in recent years have included suspected gang members linked to police shootings, human trafficking and other crimes — but there is no evidence that the gang has established an organizational structure in the U.S., said Jeremy McDermott, Colombian co-director of InSight Crime. he told the Associated Press this summer. He recently published a report on the expansion of Tren de Aragua.

Social media posts about the film allegedly showing migrants taking over a school bus in San Diego and calling 911 about Venezuelan migrants acquisition of a residential building in Chicago have also attracted attention recently. Both were unfounded.

Many immigrants from Venezuela and other Latin American countries who live in the Aurora complex say there are no gangs there and they are unfairly considered criminals.

They blamed New York City firm CBZ Management for refusing to address bedbugs, rodents and persistent water leaks, even though monthly rent was $1,200 or more. They fear they will be evicted like residents were last month at a nearby apartment complex, also managed by CBZ, that the city deemed uninhabitable.

“The only criminal here is the owner of the building,” Moises Didenot, a Venezuelan native, said Tuesday through an interpreter at a news conference in the complex’s dusty courtyard.

He showed reporters mice he recently caught with sticky traps in the basement apartment he shares with his wife and 11-year-old daughter. Only two burners on their stove work, the ceiling fan is missing a blade, and as soon as they wash the bathtub, the mold quickly returns, he said.

CBZ did not immediately respond to a request for comment, and phone numbers for two CBZ-owned apartment buildings in Aurora were disconnected.

Aurora officials said in an Aug. 30 social media post that they take the Venezuelan gang’s presence seriously and indicated they expect more arrests. They also said they “will continue to address the issues that absentee, out-of-state owners of these properties have allowed to thrive unchecked.”

The video, which helped fuel the baseless accusation, shows armed men, including one holding a long gun, walking up the stairs and knocking on the apartment door. Former residents who recorded the video told KDVR-TV it was taken before the Aug. 18 shooting at the complex in which the victim was later killed.

Aurora Police Department spokeswoman Sydney Edwards said police have the video and have seized the evidence. She said she could not comment on the ongoing investigation.

Aurora police also announced the creation of a task force with local, state and federal law enforcement to address the Tren de Aragua and other crimes affecting migrant communities.

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Hanson reported from Helena, Montana.