Aurora Releases Arrest Details as She Counters Trump’s Allegations of Venezuelan Gang Takeover

AURORA | Aurora officials pushed back against Republican Donald Trump’s claims during Tuesday’s presidential debate that the city is overrun by immigrant gangs, but added that in some cases the gang activity is concerning.

Gangs have not “taken over” the city, a statement released Wednesday said. “The exaggerated claims being fueled by social media and select news organizations are simply not true.”

The rebuttal from city police and administration officials provided new details about the arrests of eight of the 10 people they say investigators have linked to the Venezuelan prison gang Tren de Aragua, also known as TdA.

Several of the arrests stem from crimes committed at three run-down apartment complexes in northwest Aurora, all owned by the same out-of-state landlord.

The controversy exploded into national news after video footage from a resident of the complex surfaced showing armed men knocking on an apartment door. Those sounding the alarm have tied the controversy to local and national immigration policies. Aurora is a diverse city that has long struggled with crime and gangs in limited areas of the city, officials say.

“Consistent with these arrests, we can now also confirm that criminal activity, including TdA issues, has significantly impacted these properties,” city communications officials said in a statement. The message was attributed to Mayor Mike Coffman, Aurora police, administrators and Councilmember Danielle Jurinsky, who leads the City Council’s Public Safety Committee.

Jurinsky has appeared repeatedly in national and local right-wing news, on the radio and on social media in recent weeks, sometimes claiming that parts of Aurora are controlled by Venezuelan gangs.

Wednesday’s statement does not substantiate previous claims by Jurinsky and the apartment landlord about a “gang takeover” of his three complexes, but it does confirm some of their concerns about increased gang activity at those complexes, city spokesman Ryan Luby said.

Ruby said landlord Zev Baumgarten, his attorney and officials from his company, CBZ Management, “remain uncooperative given the city and APD’s failure to actually investigate allegations of gang-related incidents.”

The reported arrests include two men believed to have been involved in a July 28 shooting at Aspen Grove Apartments, a run-down complex in northwest Aurora. The arrests also include alleged TdA members who have been held in connection with various crimes at similarly run-down complexes that Baumgarten and his company own, called Whispering Pines and Aspen Grove, all within a block of each other. The city deemed Aspen Grove “uninhabitable” and closed the 100-unit apartment complex on Aug. 13, displacing hundreds of residents, mostly Venezuelan migrants.

The city and tenants of the Baumgarten complexes have provided documentation showing that the apartments suffer from structural and mechanical problems, waste, leaks, mold and pest infestations.

Wednesday’s statement was in response to Trump’s two comments during his debate Tuesday with Vice President Kamala Harris about alleged lawlessness among Venezuelan migrants in Aurora.

“Millions of people are pouring into our country from prisons and jails, from mental institutions and insane asylums,” Trump said. “Look at Aurora, Colorado. They’re taking over the cities. They’re taking over the buildings. They’re going in violently… And they’re destroying our country. They’re dangerous. They’re at the highest level of criminality.”

The city’s statement also comes two days after former LAPD Commander Todd Chamberlain was sworn in as Aurora’s seventh police chief in five years. Chamberlain’s predecessor, interim Chief Heather Morris, and the city council had spent weeks debunking allegations by Jurinsky, Coffman and Baumgarten that TDA gangsters with long guns were extorting rent payments from tenants in the complexes, driving out property managers and contributing to the buildings’ dilapidated condition.

The message is a departure from weeks of divided and often contradictory statements from Coffman, Jurinsky, law enforcement officials and even members of Congress who entered the fray.

Several Democrats, including Gov. Jared Polis and U.S. Rep. Jason Crow — whose 6th Congressional District includes Aurora — have criticized Coffman and Jurinsky for spreading misinformation. Both were critical of local Republicans’ efforts to defend Baumgarten, who has been described by many tenants as a slumlord. Crow and Polis accused local and state Republicans of stoking fears about the tens of thousands of Venezuelans who have migrated to metro Denver in the past two years, fleeing poverty, corruption and crime under President Nicolás Maduro’s regime.

Coffman has walked back some of his earlier claims about the gang problem and has recently attempted to debunk what he sees as gross exaggerations about lawlessness among Venezuelan newcomers.

Aurora police released this list of men they believe are TdA members. They are:

• Larry Medina, arrested July 10 in connection with a July 2 felony menacing charge at Whispering Pines Condominiums. The victim reported to police that Medina pointed a gun at them and threatened to kill them, police said.
• Jhonardy Pacheco-Chirinos, arrested March 28 for allegedly assaulting someone in Aspen Grove. He is also accused of involvement in a July 28 shooting at apartments in Aspen Grove.
• Jhonnarty Dejesus Pacheco-Chirinos, arrested July 29 in connection with a non-fatal shooting July 28 at the Aspen Grove Apartments.
• Luis Miguel Calzadilla-Rojas was arrested on January 3 in connection with a non-fatal shooting outside the Arapahoe County Probation Office.
• Yorman Camilo Sangronis-Garcia, involved in a consensual contact with Aurora Police on February 4 regarding a report of a hit and run collision
• Yoendry Vilchez Medina-Jose, arrested August 5 on a warrant stemming from a November 2023 assault in Whispering Pines
• Juan Carlos Mejia-Espana, arrested March 17 after a domestic dispute involving a weapon in Whispering Pines
• Carlos Aranguren-Mayora, who faces 38 charges in five pending trials in Adams, Arapahoe and Boulder County Courts for crimes dating back to December 2023
• Roiberth Daniel Mora-Marquez, arrested April 17 in connection with an April 4 dispute and an assault over unpaid rent in the 1600 block of Lima Street
• Jose Miguel Reyes-Perez, arrested May 22 on an outstanding warrant from Jefferson County Court for aggravated assault, battery and theft of a motor vehicle

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