Aurora police arrested 14 people early on Tuesday at the Edge at Lowry, the apartment complex at the center of an immigration controversy amplified by President-elect Donald Trump.
Aurora police responded to a report of an armed home invasion on the 1200 block of Dallas Street around 2:30 a.m. Tuesday. About six hours earlier, an unspecified number of suspects, a mix of men and women, had entered an apartment where two people lived, police said. Suspects allegedly bound both residents and stabbed one.
The suspects allegedly moved the two victims to another apartment on the property, where they were held against their will. Meanwhile, the victims’ apartment was burglarized.
Aurora police said the victims were able to convince their captors to let them go and promised not to call the police. After the victims were released, they drove to a friend’s house somewhere in Aurora and called 911.
A man suffered a non-life-threatening injury from a stab wound. Both victims were taken to the hospital. No other injuries have been reported.
Aurora police have not disclosed the identities of those arrested. The suspects and victims are all immigrants from Venezuela, police announced at a press conference. The incident was “100 percent gang related,” said Chief Todd Chamberlain, but APD has not confirmed if there is a connection to the Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua.
Chamberlain said the investigation is continuing at The Edge and officers are going door-to-door executing search warrants. More arrests are possible, he said.
“We will not stop until every person that is involved in this incident is held accountable,” Chamberlain said.
He added that he plans to work with federal agencies, including by tapping Department of Homeland Security and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement databases, to identify those in custody.
Earlier this year, people connected to Tren de Aragua allegedly broke into an apartment and menaced people with a gun. Video of that incident went viral and gained national attention. Two of six people from that earlier video were arrested earlier this month.
Crime near The Edge at Lowry has increased in recent years, while most of the city’s neighborhoods have seen a drop in crime since the pandemic.
But in general, researchers have repeatedly found that immigrants — whether or not they are documented — commit crimes at comparable rates to native-born Americans. Other research has found no connection between the number of undocumented residents in a community and its crime rates.
Residents say the apartments fell into disrepair due to neglect by CBZ Properties, while neighbors have complained of crime and struggled to deal with national attention on this area near East Colfax Avenue.
Some of CBZ’s Aurora properties — including part of The Edge — have been placed under control of a third-party receiver. A bank alleges CBZ has failed to make payments on loans related to the buildings.
