Colorado authorities address safety in Aurora community amid growing concerns of Venezuelan gang
As panic over Venezuelan gangs in the community continues to spread, Aurora police visited an apartment complex Friday to reassure neighbors that officers are there for them. Meanwhile, the mayor is taking a much tougher approach.
On Friday, the City of Aurora released a video of Interim Police Chief Heather Morris and a cadre of officers meeting with residents at an apartment complex that has been at the center of media and online discussions about Venezuelan gang activity.
"We're out here because we care," Morris said. "We want to reassure the people who live in this community that we are actively investigating criminal activity and listening to them."
Earlier in the week, a former resident came forward with security video showing men with large guns and said she doesn't feel the police are taking the issue seriously.
"There have been so many occasions that I've called the police while I'm sitting in my window watching the crime take place, and they will call me and say, 'I'm sorry, but we're not coming,'" Cindy Romero said.
Her car was even shot before Aurora City Council Member Danielle Jurinsky helped her find a new place to live. Jurinsky, who has been insisting for weeks that apartments in the city are being overrun by dangerous Venezuelan gangs, says the police and city need to act before someone gets hurt or killed.
"I have had city leaders give interviews, essentially trying to make it seem like I've made this entire thing up," Jurinsky said. "I think that politics is being played here with people's lives."
On Friday, Aurora Mayor Mike Coffman posted online that the Aurora City Attorney's Office will request an emergency court order to clear the apartment buildings.
Coffman also noted that while he is ready to take action, the apartment complexes that have experienced the most trouble are owned by the same out-of-state owner and have a history of crime that predates the trouble with the Venezuelan gangs.
Aurora police say it never denied that Venezuelan gangs exist in the city and have a task force to handle the situation, but the department believes the problem is being overstated.
"I'm not saying there are no gang members living in this community, but what we're learning is that gang members have not taken over this complex," Morris said.