Police in Aurora, Colorado were concerned about migrants from the Venezuelan prison gang Tren de Aragua terrorizing the city as early as last year — but the department’s police and city officials continued to downplay the situation, according to leaked internal emails.
The correspondence, which Aurora Councilmember Danielle Jurinsky shared on XIt appears Aurora police were aware of TdA’s presence in the area as early as November 2023, and some officers became frustrated with the city’s response to the gang’s crimes.
The Post was the first to report on TdA’s infiltration of the city, its takeover of several poorly maintained apartment complexes and its top leader, nicknamed “Cookie,” involved in at least two violent crimes.
Many of the emails showed that TdA was known to be taking over several apartment complexes in the Centennial State city, while officials publicly downplayed the situation.
A fed-up sergeant in the department’s homicide unit said in an August 22 email that “many people in this agency have denied the existence of TdA and say the whole thing has been blown out of proportion, while at the same time the patrol has won I cannot respond to these locations without an armored vehicle.”
The officer then expressed fears that “all hell would break loose” if Aurora officials continued to bury their heads in the sand.
“Once this group kills an innocent person, all hell will break loose and I would hate to see all of us exposed for not sharing information and/or not being able to demonstrate that we have dedicated proactive units and investigative teams.” units that have a direct impact on this problem.”
The Post could not independently verify the accuracy of the emails.
In response, the officer was told by another sergeant in the department’s Gang and Robbery Unit that “we were told” there was a list of 120 “vetted” gangbangers — but that they were having difficulty getting more information or cooperation from to get Homeland Security.
“I only speak for myself; I feel like we never denied the existence of the problem. But we have been denied the information to fully understand the problem.” the sergeant wrote in the response.
“Hopefully your email will encourage more information to be shared,” the agent added.
Another stunning email revealed that Aurora police were alerted to the Venezuelan gang’s presence in Denver in November 2023 — nearly a year before the city was catapulted into national headlines in August when terrifying video footage of a squad of gunmen captured storming through an apartment. complex went viral.
Federal law enforcement sources later confirmed to The Post that one of the men is an admitted member of TdA.
The communication from an officer within the department’s gang intervention unit, dated November 16acknowledged a warning from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement that TdA would gain a foothold in the area.
“I also spoke with an ICE agent today who contacted his intelligence guy, the guy came back pretty quickly and stated that TdA has decided to make Denver their headquarters due to the policy and location of the sanctuary,” the email said mail.
Aurora, the third most populous city in Colorado, is located about 10 miles east of Denver.
The officer said he planned to send a department-wide “Tren de Aragua bulletin” warning of the information.
That email came the same month that the brutal gang, led by TdA “shot-caller” Jhonardy Jose Pacheco-Chirino, brutally attacked a man at the Fitzsimons Place apartment complex in Aurora.
The complex was later closed due to code violationswhich the owners said they could not repair because of a gang takeover of the building, according to court documents obtained by The Post.
Chirino – who goes by “Galleta,” which is Spanish for “Cookie” – was eventually arrested in July for a shooting at the same complex that left two men injured.
After the viral images of the Edge at Lowry apartments surfaced months later, Aurora’s then-interim police chief Heather Morris denied that the gang had taken over the complex.
“I’m not saying there aren’t gang members who don’t live in this community, but what we’re learning here is that gang members have not taken over this complex,” Morris said.
Colorado Governor Jared Polis dismissed the outrage over the gang’s takeover of apartment complexes in Aurora as “imagination.”
A spokesperson for the city of Aurora told The Post that it was “aware” of the leaked emails, confirming that “over a year ago there was speculation and concern among some of our officers that members of TdA and/or other criminal elements were active. in the city where new members of the Venezuelan migrant community are being victimized.”
However, the statement further emphasized that “police departments and the legal system as a whole must rely on admissible evidence, and not on hearsay, hearsay and snippets of information.”
The spokesperson claimed that “contrary to statements on social media and by select news organizations, the city, including APD, has remained consistent in its responses to this matter.”
Aurora police continue to investigate TdA crimes, the statement said.
