DENVER — Speaking at a Friday press conference in California, former president Donald Trump – for the second time this week – singled out Aurora promising to conduct “large deportations” of immigrants.
Trump’s comments followed Tuesday’s debate, in which he cited Venezuelan gang activity in Aurora claiming “they are taking over the towns.” Aurora mayor Mike Coffman – a Republican – refuted those claims to Denver7 on Wednesday.
"There's no question there have been some issues, but it's been so dramatically exaggerated that it’s the entire city being overrun by criminal or gang activity," Coffman told Denver7. "That couldn’t be further from the truth."
Trump, during Friday’s press conference, also attacked Colorado Governor Jared Polis in his remarks.
“You take a look at what's happening in Colorado. The governor is afraid to even talk about it, the governor, he’s a Democrat,” said Trump. “Colorado, I hope you're going to vote for Trump because you're being stampeded by your own politicians.”
Denver7 reached out to the governor’s office for a response.
“Governor Polis and his public safety team have been in close contact with the mayor and the City of Aurora for weeks on this matter, and are active participants in the task force. So it’s sad to see the addled mind of a former President on display and unfortunate that he continues to promote lawlessness and division after he killed the meaningful immigration reform that would’ve actually secured the border," said a spokesperson for Polis' office. "Colorado is a zero-tolerance state for illegal activity. The reality is that violent crime is down in Aurora, and Colorado’s economy is thriving thanks to our amazing communities, small businesses, and the commonsense economic investments from the Biden-Harris administration. Aurora is a great, vibrant city of more than 400,000 hardworking Coloradans and a wonderful place to live and raise a family.”
The former president went on to promise “the largest deportation in the history of our country – and we’re going to start with Springfield (Ohio) and Aurora.”
“The governor can't talk about it because he can't go against the policies of these lunatics, that want all these people to come into our country without knowing who they are," Trump continued. "We don't even know where they come from."
During Friday’s press conference, Trump was asked by right-wing media if he would “use an event there to show the media what’s actually happening – maybe a town hall?” He responded: “No, I will – maybe Springfield, maybe Aurora, maybe both. We’ll go there.”
Politics
Trump referenced Aurora gang activity during the debate. Aurora responded.
Denver7 has extensively reported on the situation in Aurora, including purported TdA activity as well as speaking with residents of the troubled apartment and condo complexes most affected by gang activity.
Here's what we know about Tren de Aragua in Aurora
Aurora police haveidentified at least 10 documented members of TdA, and arrested 9 of them. The arrests stem from various incidents over at least the last 10 months. You can read about those arrestsnear the bottom of this page.
At least six incidents tied to those suspects took place at two apartment buildings: Whispering Pines condominiums and Fitzsimons Place apartments, both of which are owned by an out-of-state landlord, CBZ Management.
Fitzsimons Place was closed last month due to code violations. The landlord blamed poor living conditions on Venezuelan gang activity, while residents alleged years of neglect.
On Thursday, Aurora's new police chief visited two apartment complexes including Whispering Pines and Edge of Lowry to speak with residents and "get a first-hand perspective of the living conditions," according to a Facebook post. APD said code enforcement officers were on scene while a trash cleanup operation was underway.
"APD has been and continues to be dedicated to investigating criminal activity throughout the city, in addition to targeting those who are victimizing our migrant community," added police.
Claims of TdA taking over Aurora apartment complexes have not been substantiated and despite documented TdA gang activity, Denver7 obtained APD police data which showed crime is down 17% year over year across seven major crime categories.
Aurora
Trump claimed Aurora is seeing high levels of crime. Data shows otherwise
While the number of murders in Aurora are on par with last year, reported sex assaults are down 17% year-to-date.
Robberies have decreased by 11% with commercial robberies so far in 2024 down 32%. Burglaries in Aurora have also decreased by 25% compared to 2023.
Aurora police report a subcategory of aggravated assaults involving gang activity which is up 33% from 2023.
While the number of assaults involving gang activity has increased from last year – the five-year average shows aggravated assaults involving gang activity in Aurora is significantly down from 513 to 221 reported so far in 2024.
Denver7 broke down the latest Aurora crime stats in this story.
And while Coffman previously insinuated gang members had taken control of apartment complexes in Aurora, he walked back those comments in a Denver7 interview this month."I thought that the people who were the so-called gang members were extracting the rent from them, but the people that came up to me said that was not the case," he said. "They wanted to stay there, but they wanted the place maintained.”
Denver7 asked Coffman if he had confirmed any TdA activity near the apartment complexes.
“I think the view is kind of mixed on that. Quite frankly, that part is not relevant to me," Coffman said. "Now, the DEA has confirmed to me that there are Tren de Aragua elements that are involved in fentanyl distribution in and around this area that is of deep concern to me.”
Coffman has stated a goal of ridding any organized crime in the city.
"I think the impression nationally, given the debate [Tuesday] night, is that the buildings are still under the control [of gangs] and the city is too, and neither is true," Coffman said Wednesday. "The overreaction has created a hysteria in terms of what is true, what is not true. I think its important to set the record straight."
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