Sixteen suspected Tren de Aragua gang members remained in federal custody Wednesday on immigration holds after a violent home invasion and kidnapping at Aurora’s Edge of Lowry apartments.
All 16 suspects in custody are undocumented Venezuelan immigrants and are suspected of being members or associates of the Venezuelan prison gang, a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement spokesperson said in a statement.
They will remain in ICE custody pending removal proceedings or hearings before an immigration judge, the official said.
Aurora Police Department spokesperson Joe Moylan said officers detained 19 people in total for questioning Tuesday. It’s not clear what happened to the other three people.
The federal immigration proceedings don’t prevent prosecutors from charging the gang members with state crimes.
So far, though, no arrests have been made or charges filed in Monday’s violent kidnapping case, Moylan said. Investigators are continuing to work with the Department of Homeland Security and ICE to identify the detained suspects and confirm gang affiliations.
The Edge of Lowry apartment complex entered the international spotlight in September after a video of three heavily armed men barging into an apartment and knocking on doors throughout the building went viral.
According to court documents, the 60-unit apartment complex is set to close early next year as part of a legal settlement between Aurora city officials and the apartments’ owners.
Aurora police Chief Todd Chamberlain said the victims in Monday night’s armed home invasion and kidnapping were also undocumented and targeted because of their immigration status.
The victims, a man and a woman living together in the Edge of Lowry, were attacked by the group, forcibly removed from their apartment and taken to another vacant unit around 8:45 p.m. Monday, according to Chamberlain.
Chamberlain said the two were bound, pistol-whipped, threatened and tortured for hours before they talked their assailants into releasing them around 1:50 a.m. Tuesday, fled to a friend’s house across the city and called 911 to report the armed home invasion.
Aurora officers responded to the Edge of Lowry in the 1200 block of Dallas Street just before 2:30 a.m. Tuesday and detained roughly 15 people in the building for questioning, according to the police department.
Investigators locked down the apartment complex and served four search warrants throughout the day Tuesday, Aurora police officials said. Four more people were detained for questioning Tuesday afternoon, bringing the total to 19.
The apartments’ owners and property manager CBZ Management have blamed the poor living conditions in their buildings on the Tren de Aragua gang, which they claim has taken over the properties. City and police officials said Tuesday that poor management and a lack of oversight allowed crime to fester and gang activity to take root.
The Edge of Lowry owners and management company did not respond to multiple requests for comment.
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