Aurora Police Department Chief Todd Chamberlain stated on Tuesday that he is confident that the overnight incident was undoubtedly a gang-related incident. He further added that the suspects and victims involved are highly likely to be from Venezuela.
Just before 2:30 a.m. on Tuesday, Aurora Police dispatched officers to The Edge at Lowry Apartments in the 1200 block of Dallas Street for a suspected armed home invasion involving the kidnapping and attack of victims.
During a Tuesday news conference, Aurora Police Department Chief Todd Chamberlain stated that 13 to 15 people, predominantly men but also some women, entered an apartment with two people inside. The accused, according to police, transported the migrant victims to another apartment in the same complex, where they found themselves “threatened and bound.”
Authorities expect one of the victims, a man, to survive the stabbing. Both victims are currently in the hospital receiving treatment for their injuries.
Authorities said the culprits eventually freed the victims, who contacted 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.
This summer, a viral video incident at The Edge at Lowry Apartments showed armed TdA members in the staircase and hallways. TdA is a notorious Venezuelan gang.
“We have focused on that area extensively,” Chamberlain said of the apartment complex, adding that some of the members recorded on film during the summer have most likely departed.