Former president Donald Trump held a rally Friday in Colorado to underscore his argument that migrant crime is out of control.
For weeks leading up to the campaign stop, Trump has repeatedly name-checked the city of Aurora — a sprawling Denver suburb — when he speaks against immigration.
"You look at Aurora in Colorado, they are taking over the towns, they're taking over buildings, they're going in violently," Trump said during his debate with Vice President Kamala Harris.
The facts do not support his claims.
The seeds of the myth about immigrants taking over parts of Aurora come from a viral video this summer where six armed people are seen entering an Aurora apartment .
Aurora Police have never said whether the people in the video were part of any gang, but it put a spotlight on the growing number of Venezuelan migrants living in the city.
The Denver area has become home to more than 40,000 Venezuelans fleeing turmoil in their home country.
That has led to a slight increase in criminal activity around some of the places where many of the migrants live, according to police.
Weeks after the video spread on social media, police revealed that nine members of a Venezuelan prison gang have been arrested and accused of crimes in the city in the past year — many happening at the same cluster of apartment complexes.
Aurora Police Identifies Known Tren de Aragua Members
— Aurora Police Dept (@AuroraPD) September 11, 2024
The Aurora Police Department has been actively investigating reports that members of a Venezuelan prison gang, Tren de Aragua, have been living in Aurora and committing acts of violence against members of the migrant… pic.twitter.com/U42ldlOGr7
"There are many things that are occurring in these complexes, all of them are under control," said Aurora Police Chief Todd Chamberlain during a September news conference. "I can tell you right now, gangs are not in control of the city of Aurora."
The city's Republican mayor, Mike Coffman, initially said Venezuelan criminals had driven out property managers at some of the apartment buildings, but after visiting the buildings and working with police to boost safety at those locations, Coffman now pushes back on the idea that gangs are in control of the apartments.
Ahead of Trump's visit, Coffman posted on Facebook:
"The reality is that the concerns about Venezuelan gang activity have been grossly exaggerated. The incidents were limited to several apartment complexes in this city of more than 400,000 residents."
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