Aurora Mayor Says Trump Claims About Colorado Town ‘Grossly Exaggerated’

Aurora, Colorado Mayor Mike Coffman said former President Trump’s claims about the city were “grossly exaggerated” as the Republican presidential candidate plans to hold a rally in the state after calling the suburb a “war zone” because of migrants.

Coffman issued a statement on his Facebook page criticizing the former president for his false comments claiming, without evidence, that crime was increasing because of Venezuelan migrants.

Trump, who first made the false claims during the ABC News presidential debate in September, will visit the city on Friday.

“The reality is that concerns about Venezuelan gang activity are grossly exaggerated. The incidents were limited to several apartment complexes in this city of more than 400,000 residents,” Coffman said in his statement.

Coffman offered Trump the opportunity to meet with local law enforcement and learn more about the city’s public safety.

“Former President Trump’s visit to Aurora is an opportunity to show him and the nation that Aurora is a significantly safe city – and not a city overrun by Venezuelan gangs,” he said.

After the debate, Danielle Jurinsky, Coffman and Aurora city council member and chair of public safety, released a statement about their investigation into the Tren de Aragua gang at the center of the claims.

The officials claimed that the gang’s “presence in Aurora is limited to specific properties.”

“To date, APD has now linked ten people to TdA and arrested eight of those people. Two of the eight individuals taken into custody were involved in a shooting in July at one of the specific properties in the city experiencing problems with TdA activity. In line with these arrests, we can now also confirm that criminal activity, including TdA issues, has significantly affected these properties,” Coffman and Jurinsky, also a Republican, said in the statement.

Despite calls from officials to stop spreading exaggerated claims, Trump has continued to portray Aurora as a dangerous lair on the campaign trail.

During a visit to The John Kobylt Show on KFI AM 640 on Tuesday, Trump doubled down on his false and baseless anti-migrant rhetoric and lashed out against Coffman and other leaders.

“You have a lot of cities that are worse than Aurora. The mayor, the governor of Colorado, a liberal Democrat, has no idea what to do. He has no idea, and they don’t want to speak out because they don’t want to speak out about, you know, their government,” he said.

via: ABC News