US immigration raids target illegal immigrants in Aurora, Colorado

By Brad Brooks

(Reuters) - Officers from several U.S. federal agencies searched for illegal immigrants on Wednesday in Aurora, the Colorado city with a large migrant population where President Donald Trump laid out his immigration policies during his campaign.

Federal officials said they were targeting over 100 alleged members of Tren de Aragua, a Venezuelan gang with prison origins that has expanded throughout the Americas.

A Reuters eyewitness to the raids on several apartment complexes in Aurora noted agents were knocking on all doors and targeting anybody who may have been in the U.S. illegally, saying it appeared to be a blanket action not targeting any gang members.

The Denver field office of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement said on social media that it partnered with the FBI, Drug Enforcement Agency, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and U.S. Marshals Service to carry out the operations.

ICE did not disclose how many people it had detained, though local media outlets said several people were seen being moved onto buses in handcuffs.     

Some residents say Tren de Aragua has infiltrated Aurora, a city in the Denver suburbs. Local officials have called assertions about Tren de Aragua's reach and activities in Aurora false and incendiary. 

Trump held a rally in Aurora just weeks before the November election in which he laid out his immigration policies and said he would launch a national "Operation Aurora" to target gang members.

Trump, a Republican, issued an array of executive orders to crack down on illegal immigration after taking office last month. Since then, federal officials have highlighted immigration operations across the country as the first step in what Trump has vowed will be mass deportations.

On Wednesday, ICE Acting Director Caleb Vitello, speaking at the site of one of the Aurora operations, said in a video posted on social media the raids were taking place to target alleged gang members and that "as long as there are bad guys in the streets we're going to be out here arresting them."

Denver Mayor Mike Johnston, a Democrat, has spoken out against Trump's plans for deporting immigrants. 

Johnston said in a written statement on Wednesday that his office was aware of the immigration operations, adding "Denver Police and city authorities were not involved in these actions, nor were we given prior notice."

Colorado Governor Jared Polis, a Democrat, said in a statement his state would work "with federal law enforcement agencies in apprehending dangerous criminals to make Colorado safer for everyone." Polis added that he wants to see more transparency from the federal government about the immigration actions being taken in Colorado, in part to lessen the fears and uncertainty felt by immigrants.

The Colorado Immigrant Rights Coalition, an advocacy group, wrote on social media that Wednesday's operations were taking place at apartment complexes and without warrants being shown to residents.

"Families are being prevented from leaving their homes - even to take their children to school," the group said. "This action, taking place in Aurora, a focal point of Trump's anti-immigrant rhetoric, is a direct attempt to criminalize immigrant communities."

(Reporting by Brad Brooks and Kevin Mohatt in Colorado, Editing by Rosalba O'Brien)