Blaze News investigates: Tren de Aragua exploits Colorado's sanctuary policies amid legal firestorm

While the Biden-Harris administration's open border policies have allowed waves of illegal immigrants to resettle in the United States, Colorado's sanctuary policies brought the immigration crisis "right to the doorsteps of communities in the front range," Castle Rock Town Council Member Max Brooks (R) told Blaze News.

Sanctuary policies, including those in Colorado, have prevented local law enforcement officials from cooperating with federal immigration agents, effectively protecting illegal immigrants — including those who have committed crimes after entering the U.S. — by creating massive roadblocks for Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers seeking to detain and deport them. These restrictions have made ICE's work far more dangerous, time-consuming, and expensive.

The state's and Denver's sanctuary policies have acted as magnets for illegal immigrants pouring into the country under the leadership of the Biden-Harris administration, and multiple counties and surrounding municipalities have had enough of dealing with the fallout.

One of the most concerning aspects of the immigration spillover effect happening around the Denver area is the potential spread of the vicious Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua.

TDA heads to Aurora

TDA, a former prison gang that got its start as a railroad labor union in Aragua, Venezuela, has grown into a transnational crime syndicate that has successfully made its way into the U.S. in unknown numbers.

While the Biden-Harris administration maintains that foreign nationals coming into the country are required to undergo advanced vetting processes, the evidence says otherwise.

‘There are several buildings’ that have ‘fallen to these Venezuelan gangs.’

Despite the Venezuelan government's refusal to share its criminal database information with the U.S., the administration launched the CHNV program, which allows 30,000 individuals from Cuba, Haiti, Nicaragua, and Venezuela to enter the country each month.

The federal government also extended Temporary Protected Status to Venezuelan nationals on the basis that they cannot "safely" return to their country of origin, citing "a severe humanitarian emergency due to a political and economic crisis, as well as human rights violations and abuses and high levels of crime and violence, that impacts access to food, medicine, healthcare, water, electricity, and fuel, and has led to high levels of poverty," according a Federal Register notice.

It also noted that the country has "experienced heavy rainfall" in 2023 that caused flooding and landslides — issues that the federal government claimed "contribute to the country's existing challenges."

According to the notice, one of the reasons for granting TPS status to Venezuelan nationals is because the country has the "highest rates of violent deaths in the world," in large part due to "organized gangs."

Meanwhile, these federal programs and the administration's catch-and-release policies at the border have allowed millions of Venezuelans to take up residence in the U.S. Even more concerning, vetting of these individuals is limited to U.S. crime databases and INTERPOL.

As a result, TDA has been able to expand its influence into America, and more specifically, appearing to congregate in sanctuary jurisdictions that will further protect its gang members from any of the federal government's deportation efforts.

The immigration crisis' impact on Aurora, which is not a sanctuary city, received national attention after reports that TDA gangbangers were taking over several apartment complexes. Some local officials initially denied the claims that TDA had gained a foothold in the area, but in August, a surveillance video showed armed men storming through an Aurora apartment complex, Blaze News previously reported.

The video evidence further ignited fears that TDA had conquered parts of the city.

The footage captured five men, four carrying firearms, banging on the door of a residence at the Edge of Lowry. A separate video taken of the same apartment but at a presumably earlier time showed a man taking a hammer to the door's deadbolt lock.

A couple who were former residents at the complex told KDVR that living at the property had turned into "a nightmare" for them, stating that their vehicle was riddled with bullet holes from a shootout that had occurred earlier the same month.

The couple thanked Aurora City Council member Danielle Jurinsky for helping them move out of the complex, which they stated had become home to TDA gang members.

Jurinsky told KDVR at the time that nonprofit organizations in the city had "lined up" to assist the new immigrant arrivals, "but nobody is helping the Americans that are trapped in these apartment complexes."

Aurora Police Chief Todd Chamberlain initially claimed that the investigation into the incident did not find any gang ties.

"There's a lot of limitations, a lot of rules, a lot of regulations that relate to identifying someone as a specific gang member or an affiliate of a gang," Chamberlain explained. "Many of these individuals we're talking about come from a country which does not have a strong relationship with the United States, come from a country that does not have a database that they are going to share."

Despite some local leaders' denial of the gang's influence, Jurinsky insisted that TDA gangbangers had taken over some apartment complexes in the Aurora area.

"In the entire Denver metro area, it has been like pulling teeth to get anyone, the media, other elected officials, to get anyone to acknowledge the presence of this trend and to acknowledge that there is even a problem," she told Fox News Digital shortly after the video went viral.

Colorado Gov. Jared Polis (D) outright rejected allegations that TDA gang members had gained a foothold in areas of the state despite the Aurora Police Department forming a special task force to address the gang's presence.

He accused Jurinsky of making claims about TDA created largely out of her own "imagination."

Shelby Wieman, a spokesperson for Polis, told the New York Post, "The governor has already let the mayor know that the state is ready to support the local police department with assistance from state troopers and the Colorado Bureau of Investigation if needed."

"But according to police intelligence, this purported invasion is largely a feature of Danielle Jurinsky's imagination," Wieman said.

While Polis essentially rejected the claims, Aurora Mayor Mike Coffman (R) acknowledged that "there are several buildings" that have "fallen to these Venezuelan gangs."

As the weeks passed, the truth about the Edge at Lowry complex and others in the surrounding area started to surface.

A month after the viral surveillance video was released, law enforcement sources revealed to the New York Post that one of the three men arrested in connection with the incident admitted to being a TDA gang member.

Niefred Serpa-Acosta, 20, allegedly told ICE officers that he was affiliated with the gang. He also reportedly has crown tattoos, a symbol frequently associated with TDA.

‘Sanctuary policy does not protect lawful immigrants or United States citizens it only protects criminals.’

All three of the arrested suspects have collected lengthy rap sheets during their time in Colorado, sources told the Post. According to KCNC-TV, approximately 10 minutes after the surveillance footage was captured, the men were allegedly involved in a deadly shooting.

Amid mounting allegations of TDA apartment takeovers, the Aurora Police Department released the mugshots and identities of 10 TDA gang members in mid-September.

Per the department's announcement, roughly five miles away from the Edge at Lowry, several TDA gang members were arrested for incidents that occurred at Whispering Pines Condominium. The alleged crimes included assault, domestic dispute with a weapon, and felony menacing.

The same police bulletin noted that two TDA gang members were detained for alleged crimes at Fitzsimons Place, an apartment complex less than two miles from Edge at Lowry. The suspects were arrested for assault and a nonfatal shooting.

That same week, Mayor Coffman and Council member Jurinsky issued a joint statement "to clear the record about the widely reported presence of Tren de Aragua (TdA) in Aurora and across the metro area."

They explained that "overstated claims" suggested that TDA had taken over the city.

"TdA's presence in Aurora is limited to specific properties," they clarified. "We can also now confirm that criminal activity, including TdA issues, had significantly affected" specific properties in the city.

John Fabbricatore, a retired ICE Denver Field Office director and current Republican congressional candidate for Colorado's 6th District, told Blaze News, "Initially, the gang has been confined to specific areas of the city, but if it is ignored it will spread out further throughout the city and state. Aurora must work with Federal authorities as a force multiplier to gather the information and resources necessary to eradicate this growing threat."

Non-sanctuary jurisdictions push back

Earlier this year, Douglas and El Paso Counties filed a lawsuit against the state and Gov. Polis over their sanctuary policies, specifically Colorado House Bill 19-1124 and 23-1100. The complaint claimed that the bills are "illegal and unconstitutional" because they undermine federal immigration laws and regulations. Furthermore, the counties argued that the unlawful legislation has "create[d] dangerous conditions" for Colorado residents and immigrants.

HB 19-1124 claims to "protect" residents from "federal government overreach" by prohibiting law enforcement from arresting or detaining an individual based on ICE's detainer request. Local law enforcement officers are also barred from providing information about individuals to the federal government. HB 23-1100 banned state and any local government officials from "entering into an agreement for the detention of individuals in an immigration detention facility that is owned, managed, or operated by a private entity."

Fabbricatore told Blaze News that the sanctuary laws have "released criminals onto the streets," many of whom "have reoffended and even committed murder" afterward.

He pointed to one case where an illegal alien, 37-year-old Jose Guadalupe Menjivar-Alas, was arrested for the killing of a Colorado mother and her son. In another case, 19-year-old Ever Valles was accused of robbing and murdering a man after Denver ignored ICE's detainer request.

"Sanctuary needs to stop immediately for the safety of our communities. In my opinion Sanctuary policy does not protect lawful immigrants or United States citizens it only protects criminals," Fabbricatore declared.

He referenced a House Judiciary Committee report, which noted that the recidivism rate was 29% for 10,000 immigrants with ICE detainer requests that were not honored between January and September 2014.

The counties' lawsuit against Colorado and Polis read, "The nation is facing an immigration crisis. The nation, the state, and local governments need to cooperate and share resources to address this crisis. Colorado House Bills 19-1124 and 23-1100 prohibit the necessary cooperation and create dangerous conditions for the State and migrants."

Douglas County commissioners previously stated that other counties may be interested in joining the lawsuit against Colorado.

‘The surrounding communities in the metro area never asked to be part of any asylum seeker programs.’

Shortly after filing the initial lawsuit, District 2 Commissioner George Teal told the "Jeff and Bill Show" that there was a "laundry list of counties and municipalities across the state who are just aching to join us on this," noting that the sanctuary legislation has impacted other police operations around the state.

In May, Douglas County filed an amended lawsuit against Colorado after Elbert, Garfield, Mesa, and Rio Blanco Counties also joined the complaint — representing 25% of the state's population.

Castle Rock, a town within Douglas County approximately 30 miles south of Denver, has also dealt with the consequences of Denver's sanctuary policies that have drawn in large numbers of immigrants.

Castle Rock City Council Member Max Brooks recently put forth a motion to instruct the town's attorney to consider a similar lawsuit against Denver. The motion passed 7-0 in September.

"The Town of Castle Rock, through Town Council, issued a declaration of support for the lawsuit filed by Douglas County against the state regarding the prohibition of local law enforcement speaking/coordinating directly with ICE," Brooks told Blaze News. "Because Castle Rock has no municipally funded/run detention facilities we are unable to prove standing so we may actually join their lawsuit."

"The declaration was the best we could do as a Council to voice very strong support of the County's lawsuit," Brooks continued. "We remain very strong supporters of our local and county law enforcement and encourage them to perform their duties to every extent they can in order to catch criminals and put them in jail. I am personally deeply opposed to any effort whatsoever to hamper our law enforcement from performing their public safety duties to protect our residents of Castle Rock and Douglas County."

When asked whether he had seen evidence of TDA's infiltration beyond Denver and Aurora into the Castle Rock area, Brooks told Blaze News that the state's sanctuary legislation makes identifying someone's immigration status and country of origin "much more difficult."

"While we have not directly seen evidence of TdA here in Castle Rock, I believe it is irresponsible for any local government to 'hope for the best' when we already have irrefutable facts showing nearly 45,000 illegal migrants have been brought to Denver, that the vast majority of those migrants are Venezuelan, that there is virtually ZERO vetting of migrants at the border, and that there is a TdA element active in Aurora," Brooks explained.

He noted that at one point, city leaders in Aurora also had "zero evidence of TdA activity but now find their city in a vastly different situation."

Brooks stated that organized retail theft rings have been more frequently targeting stores in Castle Rock, creating "a very large issue for big box retailers."

Additionally, Brooks pointed to a motor vehicle theft ring that the Douglas County Sheriff's Office recently busted. In late August, the department announced that, following multiple investigations, it arrested 11 individuals with suspected ties to the thefts. Among those arrested were three Venezuelan nationals and a Columbian national.

"The surrounding communities in the metro area never asked to be part of any asylum seeker programs, and Denver's own decisions are negatively impacting neighboring communities," Brooks told Blaze News.

He called for the funding of such programs to end.

"Washington has failed us, but so has Colorado and Denver following suit with dedicating $90 million in funding for asylum programs," he continued. "Illegal migrants continue to flow into Denver, despite the decrease and their desperate PR attempts to show executive order efficacy at the border."

“The number one concern I hear from constituents is public safety, tied directly to illegal migration. The Biden/Harris administration began this travesty, but the state of Colorado and city of Denver brought it right to the doorsteps of communities in the front range."