Immigration

Nine Suspected Tren De Aragua Gangbangers Charged For Brutal Kidnapping

(Flickr/Photo by Shane T. McCoy / US Marshals)

The Aurora Police Department (APD) on Monday announced formal charges against nine suspected migrant gangbangers allegedly involved in a violent kidnapping and home invasion of a Colorado couple.

The kidnapping, which occurred in December, took place at the Edge at Lowry Apartments, an apartment complex that has attracted national headlines in recent months for alleged migrant gang activity. Previous investigations have determined that the Edge at Lowry, along with another apartment building in the area, was taken over by members of Tren de Aragua, a vicious Venezuelan prison gang that has gained a foothold in the United States since the Biden administration’s border crisis began.

The nine suspects charged are Andres Alexander Liendo-Padilla, Javier Alexander Alvarado Parada, Jesus Alberto Alejos Escalona, Junior Reyes-Barrios, Barbara Sivle Medina-Arcaya, Donarkys Teresa Suarez-Quesada, Luigi Javier Soto-Sucre, Niefred Jose Serpa-Acosta and Jengrinso Elias Loreto-Petit, according to the APD.

“The suspects face varying charges including second-degree kidnapping, first-degree assault, aggravated robbery, second-degree burglary, extortion and menacing,” the APD said in a statement. “In addition to the above charges, the Aurora Police Department has also obtained arrest warrants for three additional suspects. Those suspects are not yet in custody.”

The immigration history of the suspects are not immediately clear. An ICE spokesperson was not able to immediately respond to a request for comment from the Daily Caller News Foundation.

The incident occurred when a man and woman were walking outside in the early morning of Dec. 17 and accosted by a group of suspected gangbangers.

The two victims were taken to the Edge apartment against their will by a group of about 13 to 15 armed individuals, according to a press briefing from Aurora Police Chief Todd Chamberlain. While the two were restrained, pistol whipped and stabbed, some of the alleged assailants went to the victims’ home at a different apartment complex to steal some of their belongings.

The victims were later released by their captives after promising that they would not call the police, according to Chamberlain. Afterward, they drove away and called law enforcement.

During a press briefing in December, Chamberlain acknowledged the criminal history of the apartment building in question and said he believed that the suspects are part of a migrant gang.

“As everybody here knows, and as the nation knows, this complex is an incredibly problematic complex,” the police chief said. “It is an incredibly crime-riddled complex that we have been focused on.”

“This is without question a gang incident,” he continued. “I don’t know which gang they are affiliated with yet. It might be TdA [Tren de Aragua]. It could not be TdA.”

The nine individuals who were formally charged are in Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) custody, the APD confirmed. Another seven suspects are also being detained by ICE as the investigation into the kidnapping continues.

The Denver area has accepted a massive number of Venezuelan nationals and other migrants since the dawn of the Biden border crisis in 2022, which has been followed by a growing number of suspected and confirmed TdA-related crime incidents in the area. In response, the APD launched Operation Safe Haven, a task force dedicated to investigating migrant crime in Aurora.

Despite this growing threat from a notorious migrant gang, liberal activists have warned Colorado officials not to deviate from the state’s strict sanctuary laws. The American Civil Liberties Union in December delivered letters to sheriffs in the state, threatening to sue them if they cooperate with President-elect Donald Trump’s planned deportation operation or cooperate with federal immigration authorities.