4 teens arrested, accused of violating Colorado Organized Crime Control Act, Aurora police say

Aurora police have arrested four teenagers who have been accused of organized crime control charges. Investigators said this comes after an extensive investigation by the Aurora Police Department's Crime Gun Intelligence Unit.

The suspects have been identified as Lennon Melgares, 18, of Edgewater, Xavier Chavez, 18, of Aurora, Jayden Velarde, 18, of Morrison, and a 17-year-old Lakewood teenager. Chavez was arrested on Sept. 5 by the Aurora police SWAT Team. 

The other three were arrested Sept. 6 in Jefferson County with the assistance of the Jefferson County SWAT Team. The Lakewood teenager is not being identified because he is a minor, according to Aurora police. 

All four suspects face charges in Arapahoe District Court and were filed under the Colorado Organized Crime Control Act. The suspects face several charges including attempted first-degree murder, conspiracy to commit first-degree murder, aggravated intimidation of a victim or witness and felony menacing.

The charges stem from April when investigators from the Aurora Police Crime Gun Intelligence Unit began reviewing unsolved shooting cases. Investigators were able to connect multiple unsolved shootings in Aurora to other open investigations in Wheat Ridge and Lakewood by using self-developed ballistic evidence from the Aurora Police Crime Gun Intelligence Center.

Aurora detectives worked with Wheat Ridge, Lakewood and Lakeside to build cases against the four suspects and determined that they were engaged in activity that met the state's definition of an organized criminal enterprise stemming from weapons offenses throughout the Denver metro area. 

The investigations are active and ongoing. Anyone with any information is asked to contact Metro Denver Crime Stoppers at 720.913.STOP (7867). Tipsters can remain anonymous and could be eligible for a reward of up to $2,000.