AURORA, Colo. — Aurora Police on Wednesday provided additional details about the arrest of eight documented members of a Venezuelan gang, with some of the arrests dating back to January and in connection to crimes from late last year.
Police and the city have been pushing back on claims that the city has been "taken over" by Tren de Aragua (TdA) members. Former President Donald Trump repeated those claims during Tuesday night's debate with Vice President Kamala Harris. The city issued a statement refuting them.
"As for the perception and reality of public safety in Aurora, please understand that issues experienced at a select few properties do not apply to the city as a whole or large portions of it. TdA has not 'taken over,'” the city's statement says in part. "The overstated claims fueled by social media and through select news organizations are simply not true. Again, TdA’s presence in Aurora is limited to specific properties, all of which the city has been addressing in various ways for months."
Tren de Aragua members have been arrested for various crimes including shootings, assaults and menacing incidents. The most recent arrest was made on Aug. 5, police said.
RELATED: 'It's false information': Tenants respond to claims Aurora complex overtaken by Venezuelan gang
Many of the incidents happened at or near the Fitzsimmons Place apartments on Nome Street and the Whispering Pines Condominiums. However, some gang members were arrested for crimes that occurred in Jefferson and Boulder counties.
The first arrest was made on Jan. 3 of this year. On that evening, a 32-year-old man was arrested in connection with a non-fatal shooting that occurred earlier that day in front of the Arapahoe County probation office at 15400 East 14th Place. According to police, he is a documented member of TdA.
RELATED: Landlord agrees to give up control of apartment complex where Venezuelan gang has been active
In March several people with ties to the gang were arrested, Aurora Police said. A 27-year-old man was arrested on March 17 following a domestic dispute that involved a weapon at the Whispering Pines Condominiums, located at 15483 East 13th Ave.
On May 22, Aurora police arrested a documented TdA member on a warrant out of Jefferson County for aggravated assault, motor vehicle theft, and menacing.
Aurora Police said last month they'd arrested Jhonardy Pacheco-Chirinos on March 28 in connection with an assault last November at the Fitzsimmons Place apartments at 1568 Nome St. He has a separate case pending from July, but police did not provide any details about it.
His older brother Jhonnarty Dejesus Pacheco-Chirinos was arrested on July 29, a day after a non-fatal shooting at the same apartment complex. Both brothers are documented members of TdA, according to police.
On July 10, a 29-year-old man was arrested concerning a felony menacing incident at the Whispering Pines Condominiums, at 1357 Helena St. This is a different building but is the same complex where the March domestic violence incident was reported.
Last month, a 33-year-old man was arrested by the Arapahoe County Sheriff's Office, according to Aurora Police. He was taken into custody on Aug. 5 in connection with a warrant related to a November 2023 assault at Whispering Pines complex at a building on Helena Street.
Another man had numerous contacts with Aurora Police and other agencies in the metro area. He has five active court cases, according to Aurora Police. According to the agency, his crimes date back to December. In total, he faces 38 charges for the five cases that are in Adams, Arapahoe and Boulder counties. Those charges include robbery, burglary, kidnapping, menacing and motor vehicle theft.
Police said they'd had contact with two other men who are members of the gang. One of them was arrested on April 17 in connection with a dispute on April 4 over unpaid rent, according to Aurora Police. He was released and is now a suspect in a June 28 shooting in the 400 block of Nile Street.
