Is Aurora overrun by a gang of illegal immigrants?
Of course not.
The conservative and liberal mayors of Aurora and Denver have even come together to dispel the sensationalized reports of rampant gun violence.
There also is no vast conspiracy to cover up the gang activity of Tren de Aragua, an international criminal organization that is run by Venezuelan nationals across South America and is behind the criminal organization of recent arrivals in America who likely arrived illegally or using the asylum system.
The Denver Post and other mainstream news outlets have covered the emergence of this gang in America, but also have maintained perspective on the size, threat and activities of the gang, unlike some who are using incidents in Aurora and Denver to fuel fear of other Venezuelans and asylum seekers. Others, like the owners of an apartment beset with crime in Aurora, are using the gang as a scapegoat for the unsanitary, unsafe and unhealthy conditions of their apartments that were condemned by the city this month.
Aurora is an extremely diverse city of about 400,000 people. It has always had some gang activity – same with Denver, Commerce City, Arvada, Westminster, and Lakewood. The addition of the Tren de Aragua gang to the mix is a dangerous complication, but not a cause for panic, fleeing the city, or calling 911 without cause.
The videos of men armed with semi-automatic long guns and pistols – in the hallway of an apartment complex and during a violent armed burglary at a Denver jewelry store — are unnerving. But they’d be unnerving regardless of the race or nationality or immigrant status of the wielders.
We understand the frustration of Aurora City Councilwoman Danielle Jurinsky. It is completely unacceptable to have apartment complexes where residents are unsafe because of rampant gang activity. She is right to call attention to the issue, just as we have done for years with gangs in Aurora and youth violence in general.
Now is the time for elected officials and law enforcement to come together and eliminate organized crime that often preys upon the most vulnerable people in our communities including small-business owners, immigrants, and low-income families.
Last year, Aurora launched the Standing Against Violence Every Day, or SAVE, program in an effort to keep young people – between the ages of 14 and 25 – from committing crimes, especially acts of violence. It’s estimated 1% of the population in Aurora was involved in 34% of the city’s homicides during a 15-month span.
Four men were arrested and charged with crimes related to the violent robbery of Joyeria El Ruby in Denver in June. At least one of those men was believed to be a member of Tren de Aragua, and was captured in Texas, a sign federal officials and local law enforcement are working hand in hand to shut down this gang.
Homeland Security Investigations regional spokeswoman Alethea Smock, told The Denver Post this month that the gang was an emerging threat in Denver.
But as Aurora’s Republican Mayor Mike Coffman and Denver’s Democratic Mayor Mike Johnston told 9News Thursday night in a joint interview, their cities are still safe.
The danger of blowing things out of proportion, however, is very real.
The vast majority of Venezuelan refugees and migrants from other South American countries have come to America for a chance at freedom and to escape the violence in their home countries. We cannot demonize them because a small proportion of the thousands of recent arrivals have banded together to commit crimes.
Let’s catch the criminals, deport them, and secure our southern border so we can ensure bad eggs aren’t getting in with the good people seeking work permits, liberty and a better life for their children.
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