Aurora, Colorado police chief addresses gang problem, courage of victims following armed home invasion and kidnapping
Aurora Police Department Chief Todd Chamberlain said on Tuesday that he believes an overnight incident was "without question a gang incident," with suspects, victims all most likely Venezuelan. (Credit: FOX 31 Denver)
Police in Aurora, Colorado, say the overnight armed home invasion at a local apartment complex that resulted in 14 suspects being detained was "without question a gang incident."
Just before 2:30 a.m. on Tuesday, police were called to The Edge at Lowry Apartments in the 1200 block of Dallas Street for a reported armed home invasion in which victims were kidnapped and assaulted, the Aurora Police said.
Aurora Police Department Chief Todd Chamberlain said during a Tuesday news conference that 13 to 15 people, mostly males with some females, entered an apartment where two people were inside. Police say the suspects took the migrant victims to another apartment at the same location, where the victims were "threatened and bound."
One of the victims, a man, sustained a stab wound but is expected to survive, police said. Both victims are still at the hospital for treatment of their injuries.
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The Edge at Lowry Apartments has been completely overrun by the alleged gang members, including changing the locks, according to one resident. (Council member Danielle Jurinsky)
Aurora Police Department Chief Todd Chamberlain speaks to the media during a press conference in Aurora, Colorado on Tuesday, December 17, 2024. Chief Chamberlain told reporters than an overnight home invasion resulting in 14 arrests is believed to be a "gang incident." (Derek Shook for Fox News Digital)
At some point, authorities said, the suspects released the victims, who then called 911.
"They were pistol-whipped, they were beat, they were mistreated," Chamberlan said. "So does that fall in the category of torture for me? Yeah, it does."
"This is without question a gang incident. I don't know which gang they are affiliated with yet," he added. Chamberlain said that "there is a high assumption that they may be affiliated with the TdA [Tren de Aragua] gang," but he stopped short of declaring which gang in particular was involved because he could not be certain at this time.
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The Edge at Lowry Apartments is the location of an incident caught on viral video this past summer where armed TdA members were seen in the stairwell and hallways. TdA is a notorious Venezuelan gang.
Surveillance video of alleged gang members with guns outside apartment doors in Aurora, Colorado, next to a photo of former resident Cindy Romero. (Edward Romero)
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"We have focused on that area extensively," Chamberlain said of the apartment complex, adding that some members caught on the video from the summer have likely fled.
Fox News' Alicia Acuna, Hannah Ray Lambert and Jasmine Baehr contributed to this report.
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