Letters obtained by The Denver Gazette reveal that the city of Aurora, Colorado, was aware weeks in advance of reports that a Venezuelan gang had “forcibly taken control” of multiple apartment complexes in the area.

The letters, written by the law firm representing CBZ Management, which operates rental properties in Colorado and New York, detailed the extent of the gang activity and the company’s struggle to maintain control of its properties.

The situation came to light in a letter dated August 28, when CBZ Management’s attorneys informed Colorado Attorney General Phil Weiser that several Aurora apartment complexes had been overtaken by gangs.

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Specifically, the letter cited a gang from Venezuela that had recently immigrated to the U.S., indicating that these gangs had control of properties in Aurora, including The Aspen Grove, Whispering Pines, and The Edge at Lowry.

Despite the initial claims made by CBZ Management, Aurora city officials publicly dismissed the allegations as “diversionary tactics” designed to shift focus away from the numerous code violations that had led to the city shutting down one of the properties.

However, as more information surfaced, officials acknowledged that law enforcement had already arrested a member of the Tren de Aragua (TDA) gang, a notorious Venezuelan criminal group, in connection with violent incidents at one of the apartment complexes.

The TDA gang is involved in a variety of criminal activities, including human trafficking, drug trafficking, extortion, and money laundering.

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Local and federal authorities, including the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and the Department of Homeland Security, confirmed that TDA operates within the Denver metropolitan area and that the gang’s infiltration of multi-family properties in Aurora is not an isolated event.

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According to the letters from CBZ Management’s law firm, Aurora’s law enforcement agencies struggled to address the growing violence due to a consent decree imposed after the 2019 death of Elijah McClain.

The decree, which stemmed from an investigation by Weiser’s office, placed restrictions on the Aurora Police Department’s operations and limited their ability to act on gang-related activity.

CBZ Management reported that residents at their properties were living under constant threats of violence and that the landlords no longer had control of the complexes.

One letter from the company’s legal team described how a housekeeper warned the property manager not to return due to the risk to his safety.

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In a subsequent letter to Aurora City Manager Jason Batchelor, the attorneys further detailed the dire situation, stating that the gang presence had escalated to the point where tenants feared for their lives.

The city of Aurora closed one of the affected properties, Aspen Grove, in July, citing severe code violations such as rodent infestations, sewage backups, and a lack of electricity.

Roughly 300 residents, many of them immigrants, were evicted from the 98-unit complex near the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus.

City officials initially blamed CBZ Management for abandoning its tenants, but as more reports of gang activity came to light, they began to reconsider their stance.

In response to the growing violence, Aurora Police Lt. Sean Mitchell, who heads the department’s violent crimes section, sent an email acknowledging the uptick in criminal activity at the apartment complexes. “We are doing what we can to address the spike in violence in the community and will continue to do so,” Mitchell wrote on July 2. He encouraged landlords to advise residents to report information to the police offsite to protect their safety.

The involvement of the Tren de Aragua gang in Aurora marks a significant development in the city’s ongoing struggle with gang-related crime.

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Last week, a video surfaced showing men armed with assault rifles breaking down the doors of an apartment in the city.

Aurora Mayor Mike Coffman confirmed that Venezuelan gangs had taken control of several apartment complexes in the northern part of the city, describing the situation as a “nightmare.”

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Aurora City Councilmember Danielle Jurinsky was one of the few public officials to acknowledge the severity of the problem early on. “This is a tough problem to admit to,” Jurinsky said. “I don’t think any city wants to admit to having a problem like this. It was kind of to save face.”

As of now, local law enforcement, along with federal agencies, are working to regain control of the affected properties and address the gang infiltration.

Despite the gravity of the situation, it remains unclear whether Aurora officials have a clear path forward to ensure the safety of the city’s residents.